椴树阔叶红松林群落主要树种径级结构研究

椴树阔叶红松林群落主要树种径级结构研究孙伟中代力民章一平（中国科学院沈阳应用生态研究所,１１００１５）ＳｔｕｄｙｏｆＤｉａｍｅｔｅｒＢｒｅａｓｔＨｉｇｈＳｔｒｕｃｔｕｒｅｏｆｔｈｅＭａｉｎＴｒｅｅｓｉｎＴｉｌｉａＢｒｏａｄｌｅａｖｅｄＫｏｒｅａｎＰ...     

Sclerite calcification and reef-building in the fleshy octocoral genus Sinularia (Octocorallia: Alcyonacea)

Alcyonacean octocorals in tropical reefs are usually not considered as reef builders. Some Sinularia species, however, are capable of consolidating sclerites at the colony base to form spiculite. Nanwan Bay, southern Taiwan, features both fossilized and recently formed boulders composed of spiculite, thus demonstrating the role of Sinularia in contributing to the reef structure. Section radiography of an 18.5 kg spiculite boulder demonstrated a regular density banding of 3–6-mm intervals. Core survey indicated spiculite coverage of 25–30% on the live reef and of 30–40% on the uplifted boulders. Cores taken from living Sinularia revealed a distinct transition from discrete sclerites to compact spiculite and amorphous calcium carbonate cementing the sclerites. In the widespread S. gibberosa, sclerite formation appeared to start intracellularly, followed by a prolonged extracellular calcification process. At the calcification site, multiple sclerocytes formed expanded pseudopod-like membranes that interconnected, forming multicellular vesicles (MCVs) around the sclerites. The MCVs and the pseudopods disappeared at sclerite maturation, followed by degradation of the sclerocytes around the mature sclerites. At the colony base, granular vesicles were distributed among the sclerites, indicating a cementing process in progress. These findings suggest that colonies of Sinularia are able to cement sclerites and consolidate them at their base into spiculite, thus making them reef builders.     

ApCl基因在毕赤酵母中的表达

为了研究ApCl基因的功能,应用基因重组技术将ApCl基因片段克隆入大肠埃希菌—酵母穿梭质拉pGAPZαA,构建重组真核表达质拉pGAPZαA-ApCl,电转化巴斯德单赤酵母GS115,Zeocin筛选出阳性克隆转化子.通过比较转化空载体pGAPZaA和重组载体pGAPZαA-ApCl的不同菌株分别在含有高盐和高山梨醇浓度的液体培养基中生长情况,发现毕赤酵母GS115在转化ApCl基因后其抗旱、抗盐能力显著提高(约3倍),进一步验证了ApCl基因对提高生物抗逆能力有显著作用,为将来分离该蛋白及进一步研究奠定基础.     

Cloning and characterization of an mRNA encoding a novel G protein alpha-subunit abundant in mantle and gill of pearl oyster Pinctada fucata

Nacre formation is an ideal model to study biomineralization processes. Although much has been done about biomineralization mechanism of nacre, little is known as to how cellular signaling regulates this process. We are interested in whether G protein signaling plays a role in mineralization. Degenerate primers against conserved amino acid regions of G proteins were employed to amplify cDNA from the pearl oyster Pinctada fucata. As a result, the cDNA encoding a novel G(s)alpha (pfG(s)alpha) from the pearl oyster was isolated. The G(s)alpha cDNA encodes a polypeptide of 377 amino acid residues, which shares high similarity to the octopus (Octopus vulgaris) G(s)alpha. The well-conserved A, C, G (switch I), switch II functional domains and the carboxyl terminus that is a critical site for interaction with receptors are completely identical to those from other mollusks. However, pfG(s)alpha has a unique amino acid sequence, which encodes switch III and interaction sites of adenylyl cyclase respectively. In situ hybridization and Northern blotting analysis revealed that the oyster G(s)alpha mRNA is widely expressed in a variety of tissues, with highest levels in the outer fold of mantle and epithelia of gill, the regions essential for biomineralization. We also show that overexpression of the pfG(s)alpha in mammalian MC3T3-E1 cells resulted in increased cAMP levels. Mutant pfG(s)alpha that has impaired CTX substrate diminished its ability to induce cAMP production. Furthermore, the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, an indicator for mineralization, is induced by the G(s)alpha in MC3T3-E1 cells. These results indicated that G(s)alpha may be involved in regulation of physiological function, particularly in biological biomineralization.     

Ala99ser mutation in RIα Regulatory Subunit of protein kinase A causes reduced kinase activation by cAMP and arrest of hormone-dependent breast cancer cell growth

Expression of the RI regulatory subunit of protein kinase A type I is increased in human cancer cell lines, in primary tumors, in cells after transformation, and in cells upon stimulation of growth. Ala99 (the pseudophosphorylation site) of human RI was replaced with Ser (RI-p) for the structure-function analysis of RI. MCF-7 hormone- dependent breast cancer cells were transfected with an expression vector for the wild-type RI or mutant RI-p. Overexpression of RI-P resulted in suppression of protein kinase A type II, the isozyme of type I kinase, production of kinase exhibiting reduced cAMP activation, and inhibition of cell growth showing an increase in G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle and apoptosis. The wild-type RI overexpression had no effect on protein kinase A isozyme distribution or cell growth. Overexpression of protein kinase A type II regulatory subunit, RII, suppressed RI and protein kinase A type I and inhibited cell growth. These results show that the growth of hormone-dependent breast cancer cells is dependent on the functional protein kinase A type I.     

观赏植物花期调控途径及其分子机制

开花期控制对观赏植物的生产和应用具有重要意义。目前关于高等植物成花机理的研究已经取得了突破性进展,为观赏植物花期调控开辟了新途径。该文总结了观赏植物花期调控的途径和方法,并对改良观赏植物花期的技术思路做了初步分析。通过与高等植物成花机制研究的对比分析发现,观赏植物开花机理的研究已有了长足发展,一些观赏植物的转基因研究也取得了丰硕成果。利用分子设计育种途径改良观赏植物的开花期,突破了传统方法的局限性,其研究和应用前景非常广阔。     

两种野生花卉的扦插繁殖研究

开展野生花卉车轮梅(Raphiolepis indica)和赤楠(Syzygium buxifolium)扦插试验,结果表明:车轮梅硬枝扦插需一定浓度的外源激素方能生根;对激素浓度大小不敏感;总体上NAA组合生根质量优于IBA组合。综合不同处理生根率、根数和不定根根长3个指标,以800 mg/L NAA或800 mg/L IBA作为车轮梅生产上扦插的激素种类和浓度。赤楠生根率较低,最高扦插率达66.7%,生根时间长,约需45 d始生根。综合生根率、不定根根数和不定根根长3个生根指标,试验的4种激素均能较好促进赤楠生根,200×根太阳在生根率和根数上效果最好,生产上可用200×根太阳浸泡2 h,也可用50-100 mg/L NAA或100-400 mg/L IBA浸泡2 h后进行扦插。     

Polo box domain of Plk3 functions as a centrosome localization signal, overexpression of which causes mitotic arrest, cytokinesis defects, and apoptosis

Polo-like kinase 3 (Plk3), an immediate early response gene product, plays an important role in the regulation of mitosis, DNA damage checkpoint activation, and Golgi dynamics. Similar to other members of the Plk family, Plk3 has a conserved kinase domain at the N terminus and a Polo box domain consisting of two Polo boxes at the C terminus. In this study, we demonstrate that the Polo box domain of Plk3 is sufficient for subcellular localization of this kinase to the centrosomes, the spindle poles, and the midbody when ectopically expressed in HeLa and U2OS cells. Both Polo boxes are required for the subcellular localization. Overexpression of the Polo box domain, not the kinase domain, of Plk3 causes significant cell cycle arrest and cytokinesis defects, eventually leading to mitotic catastrophe/apoptosis. Interestingly, the Polo box domain of Plk3 is more potent in inhibiting cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis than that of Plk1, suggesting that this domain can provide an additional structural basis for discovery of new anticancer drugs given the current emphasis on Plk1 as a therapeutic target.