新生期反复惊厥对认知和海马CaMKⅡ表达的远期影响及干预研究

新生期惊厥活动可造成严重的神经后遗症,如成年期大脑对惊厥的易感和易损性提高,严重者产生认知功能损害.对发育期惊厥性脑损伤远期预后的研究,尤其是分子机制及其干预的研究具有重要的临床意义.探讨了新生期大鼠单次长程或反复惊厥对学习、记忆能力和海马突触后致密物质钙/钙调素依赖性蛋白激酶Ⅱ(CaMKⅡ)表达的远期影响及运动训练的干预作用.生后6天(P6)的SD大鼠随机分成单次长程惊厥组(SS)、反复惊厥组(RS)和对照组,每组12只.3组大鼠分别于P27～P31、P58～P61、P80～P82采用Morris水迷宫检测学习、记忆功能.P51～P56对SS组和RS组进行踏转轮训练.最后脑组织切片观察CaMKⅡmRNA在海马的表达.结果显示,第一次Morris水迷宫测试RS组第1天～第4天潜伏期明显高于对照组,具有显著性差异(P＜0.05),第二次水迷宫RS组第1天～第2天的逃避潜伏期较对照组仍显著延长,具有显著性差异(P＜0.05),第三次测试各组之间差异无统计学意义.搜寻策略显示,在第一次Morris测试时RS组第3天～第4天边缘式搜寻比例明显高于对照组,具有显著性差异(P＜0.01),同时RS组第3天～第4天趋向式搜寻比例明显低于对照组,具有显著性差异(P＜0.01),而第二次和第三次水迷宫测试3组间趋向式和直线式搜寻策略无明显差异.在记忆实验中,原平台象限游泳距离与总距离的比值,RS组第三次较对照组显著降低,有统计学意义(P＜0.05);另外RS组1～3天趋向式搜寻比例均明显低于对照组,有显著性差异(P＜0.05).CaMKⅡ原位杂交显示,各组CaMKⅡmRNA在海马均有明显表达,但是在齿状回和门区RS组表达明显低于对照组,具有统计学意义(P＜0.01).研究表明,新生期反复长程惊厥能够对学习和记忆功能产生远期的损害,可能与海马记忆分子CaMKⅡ表达下调有关,而单次长程惊厥对学习记忆无明显影响.早期运动训练能够明显改善反复惊厥所致的学习能力损害,但对记忆能力效果仍较差.     

Antioxidant activity of twenty five plants from Colombian biodiversity

The antioxidant activity of the crude n-hexane, dichloromethane, and methanol extracts from 25 species belonging to the Asteraceae, Euphorbiaceae, Rubiaceae, and Solanaceae families collected at natural reserves from the Eje Cafetero Ecorregión Colombia, were evaluated by using the spectrophotometric 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical-scavenging method. The strongest antioxidant activities were showed by the methanol and dichloromethane extracts from the Euphorbiaceae, Alchornea coelophylla (IC50 41.14 mg/l) and Acalypha platyphilla (IC50 111.99 mg/l), respectively. These two species had stronger DPPH radical scavenging activities than hydroquinone (IC50 151.19 mg/l), the positive control. The potential use of Colombian flora for their antioxidant activities is discussed.     

The effect of experimental warming on leaf functional traits, leaf structure and leaf biochemistry in Arabidopsis thaliana

Background  

The leaf is an important plant organ, and how it will respond to future global warming is a question that remains unanswered. The effects of experimental warming on leaf photosynthesis and respiration acclimation has been well studied so far, but relatively little information exists on the structural and biochemical responses to warming. However, such information is very important to better understand the plant responses to global warming. Therefore, we grew Arabidopsis thaliana at the three day/night temperatures of 23/18°C (ambient temperature), 25.5/20.5°C (elevated by 2.5°C) and 28/23°C (elevated by 5°C) to simulate the middle and the upper projected warming expected within the 21st century for this purpose.     

黄翅大白蚁后肠几丁质降解微生物的分离与鉴定

【目的】从培菌白蚁——黄翅大白蚁后肠微生物菌群中分离能降解几丁质的细菌。【方法】以胶体几丁质为唯一碳源,根据胶体几丁质水解透明圈的大小进行筛选。通过形态学、生理生化以及16SrRNA基因序列分析进行菌株鉴定。【结果】从黄翅大白蚁肠道中筛选到8株能够降解胶体几丁质的细菌,它们分别属于芽孢杆菌属(Bacillus)、短芽孢杆菌属(Brevibacillus)、纤维单胞菌属(Cellulomonas)、指孢囊菌属(Dactylosporangium)、黄杆菌属(Flavobacterium)、类芽孢杆菌属(Paenibacillus)、鞘氨醇单胞菌属(Sphingomonas)和寡养单胞菌属(Stenotrophomonas)。8株菌均具有几丁质酶、β-葡萄糖苷酶和内切葡聚糖酶活性。【结论】从黄翅大白蚁后肠中获得8株能够降解胶体几丁质并具有其他碳水化合物降解酶活性的细菌,这一研究为了解白蚁肠道微生物协助白蚁消化食物机制提供了依据。     

Aquaporin-1 in the peritoneal membrane: Implications for water transport across capillaries and peritoneal dialysis

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is an established mode of renal replacement therapy, based on the exchange of fluid and solutes between blood in peritoneal capillaries and a dialysate that has been introduced in the peritoneal cavity. The dialysis involves diffusive and convective transports and osmosis through the highly vascularized peritoneal membrane. Computer simulations predicted that the membrane contains ultrasmall pores (radius < 3 A) responsible for the transport of solute-free water across the capillary endothelium during crystalloid osmosis. The distribution of the water channel aquaporin-1 (AQP1), as well as its molecular structure ensuring an exquisite selectivity for water perfectly fit with the characteristics of the ultrasmall pore. Treatment with corticosteroids induces the expression of AQP1 in peritoneal capillaries and increases water permeability and ultrafiltration in rats, without affecting the osmotic gradient and the permeability for small solutes. Studies in knockout mice provided further evidence that osmotically-driven water transport across the peritoneal membrane is mediated by AQP1. AQP1 and endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) show a distinct regulation within the endothelium lining peritoneal capillaries. In acute peritonitis, the upregulation of eNOS and increased release of NO dissipate the osmotic gradient and result in ultrafiltration failure, despite the unchanged expression of AQP1. These data illustrate the potential of the peritoneal membrane to investigate the role and regulation of AQP1 in the endothelium. They also emphasize the critical role of AQP1 during peritoneal dialysis and suggest that manipulating AQP1 expression may be used to increase water permeability across the peritoneal membrane.     

Diuraphis noxia and Rhopalosiphum padi (Hemiptera: Aphididae) interactions and their injury on resistant and susceptible cereal seedlings

Interspecific interactions between the symptomatic (chlorosis-eliciting) Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia (Mordvilko), and the asymptomatic (nonchlorosis-eliciting) bird cherry-oat aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi (L.), on four cereal genotypes were examined by simultaneous infestations. Four cereals (i.e., Diuraphis noxia-susceptible 'Arapahoe' wheat and 'Morex' barley, and D. noxia-resistant 'Halt' wheat and 'Border' oat) and four infestations (i.e., control, D. noxia, R. padi, and D. noxia/R. padi) were used in the research. Whereas D. noxia biomass confirmed D. noxia resistance among the cereals, R. padi biomass indicated that the D. noxia-resistant cereals did not confer R. padi resistance. D. noxia biomass was significantly lower in D. noxia/R. padi infestation than that in D. noxia infestation on all cereals, except Border oat, which indicated an antagonistic effect of R. padi on D. noxia. All aphid infestations caused a significant plant biomass reduction in comparison with the control. In comparison with D. noxia infestation, D. noxia/R. padi caused a significant plant biomass reduction on all cereals, except Morex barley. Although D. noxia biomass in D. noxia/R. padi infestation was significantly less than that in D. noxia infestation, leaf chlorophyll reduction was the same between D. noxia/R. padi and D. noxia infestations, which suggested that the asymptomatic R. padi enhanced the D. noxia-elicited leaf chlorophyll loss. The regression between chlorophyll content and aphid biomass indicated that the asymptomatic R. padi in the D. noxia/R. padi infestation enhanced chlorophyll loss, but interspecific aphid interaction on plant biomass varied among the cereals.     

Enhanced antitumor efficacy of gemcitabine by evodiamine on pancreatic cancer via regulating PI3K/Akt pathway

Evodiamine has therapeutic potential against cancers. This study was designed to investigate whether combination therapy with gemcitabine and evodiamine enhanced antitumor efficacy in pancreatic cancer. In vitro application of the combination therapy triggered significantly higher frequency of pancreatic cancer cells apoptosis, inhibited the activities of PI3K, Akt, PKA, mTOR and PTEN, and decreased the activation of NF-κB and expression of NF-κB-regulated products. In vivo application of the combination therapy induced significant enhancement of tumor cell apoptosis, reductions in tumor volume, and inhibited activation of mTOR and PTEN. In conclusion, evodiamine can augment the therapeutic effect of gemcitabine in pancreatic cancer through direct or indirect negative regulation of the PI3K/Akt pathway.     

Delineating spatiotemporal and hierarchical development of human fetal innate lymphoid cells

Whereas the critical roles of innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) in adult are increasingly appreciated, their developmental hierarchy in early human fetus remains largely elusive. In this study, we sorted human hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, lymphoid progenitors, putative ILC progenitor/precursors and mature ILCs in the fetal hematopoietic, lymphoid and non-lymphoid tissues, from 8 to 12 post-conception weeks, for single-cell RNA-sequencing, followed by computational analysis and functional validation at bulk and single-cell levels. We delineated the early phase of ILC lineage commitment from hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, which mainly occurred in fetal liver and intestine. We further unveiled interleukin-3 receptor as a surface marker for the lymphoid progenitors in fetal liver with T, B, ILC and myeloid potentials, while IL-3RA^– lymphoid progenitors were predominantly B-lineage committed. Notably, we determined the heterogeneity and tissue distribution of each ILC subpopulation, revealing the proliferating characteristics shared by the precursors of each ILC subtype. Additionally, a novel unconventional ILC2 subpopulation (CRTH2^– CCR9⁺ ILC2) was identified in fetal thymus. Taken together, our study illuminates the precise cellular and molecular features underlying the stepwise formation of human fetal ILC hierarchy with remarkable spatiotemporal heterogeneity.Subject terms: Innate immunity, Haematopoietic stem cells