A novel nitrite biosensor based on the direct electron transfer of hemoglobin immobilized on CdS hollow nanospheres

A novel nitrite biosensor based on the direct electron transfer of hemoglobin (Hb) immobilized on CdS hollow nanospheres (HS-CdS) modified glassy carbon electrode was constructed. The direct electron transfer of Hb showed a pair of redox peaks with a formal potential of -286 mV (vs. SCE) in 0.1M pH 7.0 phosphate buffer solution. It was a surface-controlled electrode process involving a single proton transfer coupled with a reversible one-electron transfer for each heme group of Hb. HS-CdS had a large specific surface area and good biocompatibility and had a better electrochemical response than that of solid spherical CdS. The immobilized Hb on HS-CdS displayed an excellent response to NO(2)(-) with one irreversible electrode process for NO reduction. Under optimal conditions, the biosensor could be used for the determination of NO(2)(-) with a linear range from 0.3 to 182 microM and a detection limit of 0.08 microM at 3 sigma based on the irreversible reduction of NO. HS-CdS provided a good matrix for protein immobilization and had a promising application in constructing sensors.     

Semiparametric model-based inference in the presence of missing responses

We consider a semiparametric model that parameterizes the conditionaldensity of the response, given covariates, but allows the marginaldistribution of the covariates to be completely arbitrary. Responsesmay be missing. A likelihood-based imputation estimator anda semi-empirical-likelihood-based estimator for the parametervector describing the conditional density are defined and provedto be asymptotically normal. Semi-empirical loglikelihood functionsfor the parameter vector and the response mean are derived.It is shown that the two semi-empirical loglikelihood functionsare distributed asymptotically as weighted ² and scaled ², respectively.     

Preparation and anti-tumor efficiency evaluation of doxorubicin-loaded bacterial magnetosomes: magnetic nanoparticles as drug carriers isolated from Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense

Bacterial magnetosomes (BMs) are commonly used as vehicles for certain enzymes, nucleic acids and antibodies, although they have never been considered drug carriers. To evaluate the clinical potential of BMs extracted from Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense in cancer therapy, doxorubicin (DOX) was loaded onto the purified BMs at a ratio of 0.87 +/- 0.08 mg/mg using glutaraldehyde. The DOX-coupled BMs (DBMs) and BMs exhibited uniform sizes and morphology evaluated by TEM. The diameters of DBMs and BMs obtained by AFM were 71.02 +/- 6.73 and 34.93 +/- 8.24 nm, respectively. The DBMs released DOX slowly into serum and maintained at least 80% stability following 48 h of incubation. In vitro cytotoxic tests showed that the DBMs were cytotoxic to HL60 and EMT-6 cells, manifested as inhibition of cell proliferation and suppression in c-myc expression, consistent with DOX. These observations depicted in vitro antitumor property of DBMs similar to DOX. The approach of coupling DOX to magnetosomes may have clinical potential in anti-tumor drug delivery.     

The denitrification capability of cluster 1 Defluviicoccus vanus-related glycogen-accumulating organisms

The denitrification capability of Cluster 1 Defluviicoccus vanus-related glycogen-accumulating organisms (DvGAOs) is investigated. A sequencing batch reactor (SBR) fed with acetate as the sole carbon source was operated under alternating anaerobic-aerobic conditions to enrich Cluster 1 DvGAOs. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) showed that more than 85% of the bacterial population present in the reactor bound to the probes previously designed for Cluster 1 DvGAOs. A series of batch tests were performed to evaluate the capability of the community to reduce nitrate and nitrite. The tests were carried out both before and after the adaptation of the culture to anoxic conditions, and with both the intracellularly stored carbon and acetate as the electron donors. It was found that Cluster 1 DvGAOs were able to reduce nitrate but most likely unable to reduce nitrite. When un-adapted Cluster 1 DvGAOs were exposed to nitrate for the first time, a lag phase of approximately 4 h occurred, which was likely required for the synthesis of the necessary enzymes.     

Degradation of acetochlor by four microbial communities

Four microbial communities capable of degrading acetochlor, designated A, D, E, and J, were obtained from acetochlor-contaminated soil and sludge. Acetochlor at an initial concentration of 55mg/L was completely degraded by the four mixed cultures after 4 days. At 80 mg/L acetochlor, more than 99% degradation was observed with D, 84% with A and E, and 88% with J after 9 days. There are primary eight strains of bacteria in community A, three in community D, E, and J, respectively. No single isolate was able to degrade acetochlor efficiently. The acetochlor biodegradation products were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The probable degradative pathways of acetochlor involved dechlorination, hydroxylation, deethoxymethylation, cyclization, carboxylation, and decarboxylation. Propachlor, alachlor, and metolachlor, which are also the main components of the chloroacetanilide herbicide, could be degraded by the four mixed cultures to some degree. Given the high degradation rates observed here, the four mixed cultures obtained may be useful in the degradation processes of acetochlor.     

Synthesis and antibacterial activity of the C-7 side chain of 3-aminoquinazolinediones

A novel series of bacterial topoisomerase (3-aminoquinazolinediones) inhibitors are described. The side-chain SAR against Gram-positive and Gram-negative organisms as well as DNA gyrase activity is reported.     

二月兰形态性状的变异分析

二月兰(Orychophragmus violaceus)是集食用、保健、饲用和观赏于一身的优良地被植物。其遗传背景单一、生长周期短,是发展模式植物的优良材料。为了开发其育种价值,我们对二月兰的形态变异式样进行了初步分析。共选取了北京和南京地区的7个居群的34个表型性状进行观测。通过计算分析发现:株高、茎和花序分枝等性状受环境影响较大,因而其分类价值不大;叶形、毛被、叶缘锯齿等性状的变异在居群内是连续的,所以也不是可靠的分类性状;而花部性状的一些变异,包括花瓣的颜色、大小、形态,基本不受环境影响,且这些变异在居群内是不连续的,所以其分类价值相对较高。对17个数值性状的方差分析和多重比较结果表明,在同一年度内,大部分性状在不同地区间差异不显著,在居群间差异极显著;而在不同年度内,居群间差异不显著。最后,对7个居群和30个表型性状进行了数量分类:Q分析表明北京颐和园、南京紫金山山顶公园和南京中山植物园居群比较相似,而北京圆明园、北京海淀区后八家苗圃、南京情侣园和北京天坛公园居群较相似。R分析揭示了二月兰花部、叶部、反映植株毛被和颜色以及表现植株生长量的性状间均具有一定的相关性。这些研究可为种下等级的划分和进一步的遗传研究以及品种培育提供一定的参数资料。     

Biotransformation of 14-deacetoxyl sinenxan A by Ginkgo cell suspension cultures and the cytotoxic activity evaluation

14-Deacetoxyl sinenxan A [2,5,10β-triacetoxy-4(20),11-taxadiene, 1] was converted to two new products, 10β-hydroxy-2,5-diacetoxy-4(20),11-taxadiene (2) and 10β-butyloxy-2,5-diacetoxy-4(20),11-taxadiene (3) both about in 20% yields by Ginkgo cell suspension cultures. Their structures were identified on the basis of their chemical and spectroscopic data. The three compounds (1–3) were preliminarily evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxic activities against two solid tumor cell lines and their drug-resistant counterparts (KB and KB/V, MCF-7 and MCF-7/ADR), and the decreased activities were observed in the case of the two products. The results suggested that biotransformation might be a valuable approach to diversifying natural products and provide some useful information on the study on the structure–activity relationships of the type of compounds.     

人骨保护素N端片段在大肠杆菌中的表达及其活性分析

骨保护素 (OPG)成熟肽N端D1～D4结构域仅由 2个外显子编码 .以人基因组DNA作为模板 ,采用重叠延伸PCR得到N端D1～D4域编码序列 ,并在其上游引入 2×His密码子序列 ,然后克隆入载体pQE 30进行表达 ,SDS PAGE表明 8×His融合蛋白主要以包涵体形式存在 ,可被抗OPG抗体识别 .变性条件下通过Ni NTA金属螯合亲和层析对表达产物进行纯化后再经梯度透析进行复性 ,采用破骨细胞样细胞 (osteoclast likecell ,OLC)诱导分化实验来检测重组蛋白的生物活性 ,证实单核 巨噬细胞集落刺激因子 (M CSF)和破骨细胞分化因子 (ODF)可协同促进多核OLC的生成 ,但加入重组OPG片段后 ,OLC生成显著减少 .     

Soya food intake and risk of endometrial cancer among Chinese women in Shanghai: population based case-control study

Objective To evaluate the association of intake of soya food, a rich source of phytoestrogens, with the risk of endometrial cancer.Design Population based case-control study, with detailed information on usual soya food intake over the past five years collected by face to face interview using a food frequency questionnaire.Setting Urban Shanghai, China.Participants 832 incident cases of endometrial cancer in women aged of 30 to 69 years diagnosed during 1997-2001 and identified from the Shanghai Cancer Registry; 846 control women frequency matched to cases on age and randomly selected from the Shanghai Residential Registry.Main outcome measures Odds ratios for risk of endometrial cancer in women with different intakes of soya foods.Results Regular consumption of soya foods, measured as amount of either soya protein or soya isoflavones, was inversely associated with the risk of endometrial cancer. Compared with women with the lowest quarter of intake, the adjusted odds ratio of endometrial cancer was reduced from 0.93 to 0.85 and 0.67 with increasing quarter of soya protein intake (P for trend 0.01). A similar inverse association was observed for soya isoflavones and soya fibre intake. The inverse association seemed to be more pronounced among women with high body mass index and waist:hip ratio.Conclusion Regular intake of soya foods is associated with a reduced risk of endometrial cancer.