Structures of Receptor Complexes of a North American H7N2 Influenza Hemagglutinin with a Loop Deletion in the Receptor Binding Site

Human infections with subtype H7 avian influenza viruses have been reported as early as 1979. In 1996, a genetically stable 24-nucleotide deletion emerged in North American H7 influenza virus hemagglutinins, resulting in an eight amino acid deletion in the receptor-binding site. The continuous circulation of these viruses in live bird markets, as well as its documented ability to infect humans, raises the question of how these viruses achieve structural stability and functionality. Here we report a detailed molecular analysis of the receptor binding site of the North American lineage subtype H7N2 virus A/New York/107/2003 (NY107), including complexes with an avian receptor analog (3′-sialyl-N-acetyllactosamine, 3′SLN) and two human receptor analogs (6′-sialyl-N-acetyllactosamine, 6′SLN; sialyllacto-N-tetraose b, LSTb). Structural results suggest a novel mechanism by which residues Arg220 and Arg229 (H3 numbering) are used to compensate for the deletion of the 220-loop and form interactions with the receptor analogs. Glycan microarray results reveal that NY107 maintains an avian-type (α2-3) receptor binding profile, with only moderate binding to human-type (α2-6) receptor. Thus despite its dramatically altered receptor binding site, this HA maintains functionality and confirms a need for continued influenza virus surveillance of avian and other animal reservoirs to define their zoonotic potential.     

MGMT Ile143Val polymorphism,dietary factors and the risk of breast,colorectal and prostate cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)-Norfolk study

O⁶-Methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) repairs DNA damage caused by alkylating agents including N-nitroso compounds from diet. MGMT Ile143Val polymorphism may lead to less DNA damage repair and increased cancer risk depending on the environmental exposures. We investigated interactions between dietary factors and the MGMT Ile143Val polymorphism in relation to breast, colorectal and prostate cancer risk. There were 276/1498, 273/2984 and 312/1486 cases/controls for the breast, colorectal and prostate cancer studies respectively; all nested within the EPIC-Norfolk study, a prospective cohort of approximately 25,000 men and women aged 40–79. Baseline 7-day food diary data were collected for dietary assessment. MGMT Ile143Val polymorphism was not overall associated with breast, colorectal and prostate cancer risk. There was a significant interaction between this polymorphism and intake of red and processed meat on colorectal cancer risk (P_interaction = 0.04) suggesting an increased risk among carriers of the variant genotype compared to the MGMT Ile143Ile common genotype. A lower colorectal cancer risk was seen with higher intake of vitamin E and carotene among the variant genotype group but not in the common genotype group (P_interaction = 0.009 and P_interaction = 0.005 for vitamin E and carotene, respectively). A higher prostate cancer risk was seen with higher alcohol intake among the variant genotype (OR = 2.08, 95% CI = 1.21–3.57, P_interaction = 0.0009) compared to the common genotype with lower alcohol intake. In this UK population, the MGMT Ile143Val polymorphism was not overall associated with breast, colorectal and prostate cancer risk. There was evidence for this polymorphism playing a role in modulating the risk of prostate cancer in presence of alcohol. For colorectal cancer, the MGMT Ile143Val polymorphism may confer increased or decreased risk depending on the dietary exposure.     

高温对水稻叶片蛋白质表达的影响

为明确高温对耐热性不同水稻品种叶片蛋白质表达的影响,以耐热性不同的2个籼稻品种双桂1号(不耐热)和黄华占(耐热)为材料,分别于苗期、减数分裂期及抽穗(始穗后0—10d)和灌浆早期(始穗后11—20d)进行高温处理,之后取材并采用双向凝胶电泳技术研究高温对不同水稻品种叶片蛋白质表达的影响。结果表明,高温胁迫导致叶片中蛋白质的变化呈4种状况:新蛋白质的产生,一些蛋白质表达量上调,一些蛋白质的表达被抑制,一些蛋白质表达量下调。蛋白质表达变化在两品种以及4个处理时期的表现不同,总体表现为在热敏感品种中表达谱发生变化的蛋白质总数高于耐热品种。质谱分析表明,差异蛋白质主要涉及光合作用和信号转导,该类蛋白质在热敏感品种中表现为不表达或表达量下降,而在耐热品种则表现为有新诱导的蛋白质的产生或表达量上调,表明参与光合作用和信号转导的蛋白质在水稻耐热机制中发挥了重要作用。     

Molecular Cloning and Characterization of a Locus Responsible for O Acetylation of the O Polysaccharide of Legionella pneumophila Serogroup 1 Lipopolysaccharide

Complementation experiments, Tn5 mutagenesis, and DNA sequencing were used to identify a locus (lag-1) that participates in acetylation of Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 lipopolysaccharide. Nuclear magnetic resonance analyses of lipopolysaccharides from mutant and complemented strains suggest that lag-1 is responsible for O acetylation of serogroup 1 O polysaccharide.     

单核细胞增生李斯特菌单克隆抗体的制备与鉴定

以单核细胞增生李斯特菌细胞碎片免疫BALB/c小鼠,间接ELISA法成功筛选获得2株稳定分泌抗LM的单克隆杂交瘤细胞株4A7、4H11.抗体效价为1∶160 000以及1∶20 000,亚型为IgG1、IgG2a,Dot-ELISA结果表明4A7和4H11单克隆抗体具有很好的属特异性,Western blot分析表明4A7、4H11抗体分别与单核细胞增生李斯特菌62 kDa以及32 kDa外膜蛋白抗原表位结合,胶体金免疫电镜实验进一步确证以上抗体可有效识别单核细胞增生李斯特菌细胞表面抗原.     

两种激活处理促进小鼠孤雌胚胎原核形成

不同人工处理方法激活哺乳动物卵母细胞的机理相似,但其激活效率存在差异。本研究以昆明(KM)、129/Sv×KM F1和C3H×KM F1雌鼠来源的卵母细胞为对象,利用氯化锶(SrCl2,Sr2+)联合细胞松弛素B(cytochalasin B,CB)(Sr2++CB)和离子霉素(ionomycin,Ion)联合6-二甲胺基嘌呤(6-dimethylaminopurine,6-DMAP)(Ion+6-DMAP)两种激活方法处理下对比分析不同品系小鼠卵母细胞的激活效率,并以卵母细胞原核形成率、原核数量和孤雌胚胎体外发育来评价两种激活剂的激活效率。研究结果表明,Ion+6-DMAP激活卵的1原核比率显著高于2原核(p0.05),Sr2++CB激活卵的2原核比率显著高于1原核(p0.05);KM、129/Sv×KM F1和C3H×KM F1各组孤雌胚胎卵裂率和激活率没有显著差异(P0.05),但129/Sv×KM F1和C3H×KM F1囊胚发育率显著高于KM组(p0.05)。3种小鼠品系的卵母细胞用Sr2++CB处理的孤雌胚胎发育率显著高于Ion+6-DMAP。结果证明,Sr2++CB处理小鼠卵母细胞的激活效率明显优于Ion+6-DMAP;129/Sv×KM F1和C3H×KM F1的孤雌胚胎体外发育率显著高于KM小鼠,为研究小鼠遗传背景影响孤雌胚胎发育的机理提供参考。     

Knockdown of DIXDC1 Inhibits the Proliferation and Migration of Human Glioma Cells

DIX domain containing 1 (DIXDC1), the human homolog of coiled-coil-DIX1 (Ccd1), is a positive regulator of Wnt signaling pathway. Recently, it was found to act as a candidate oncogene in colon cancer, non-small-cell lung cancer, and gastric cancer. In this study, we aimed to investigate the clinical significance of DIXDC1 expression in human glioma and its biological function in glioma cells. Western blot and immunohistochemistry analysis showed that DIXDC1 was overexpressed in glioma tissues and glioma cell lines. The expression level of DIXDC1 was evidently linked to glioma pathological grade and Ki-67 expression. Kaplan–Meier curve showed that high expression of DIXDC1 may lead to poor outcome of glioma patients. Serum starvation and refeeding assay indicated that the expression of DIXDC1 was associated with cell cycle. To determine whether DIXDC1 could regulate the proliferation and migration of glioma cells, we transfected glioma cells with interfering RNA-targeting DIXDC1; investigated cell proliferation with Cell Counting Kit (CCK)-8, flow cytometry assays, and colony formation analyses; and investigated cell migration with wound healing assays and transwell assays. According to our data, knockdown of DIXDC1 significantly inhibited proliferation and migration of glioma cells. These data implied that DIXDC1 might participate in the development of glioma, suggesting that DIXDC1 can become a potential therapeutic strategy for glioma.     

NLRP3 regulates alveolar bone loss in ligature‐induced periodontitis by promoting osteoclastic differentiation

ObjectivesNLRP3 inflammasome is a critical part of the innate immune system and plays an important role in a variety of inflammatory diseases. However, the effects of NLRP3 inflammasome on periodontitis have not been fully studied.Materials and methodsWe used ligature‐induced periodontitis models of NLRP3 knockout mice (NLRP3^KO) and their wildtype (WT) littermates to compare their alveolar bone phenotypes. We further used Lysm‐Cre/Rosa^nTnG mouse to trace the changes of Lysm‐Cre⁺ osteoclast precursors in ligature‐induced periodontitis with or without MCC950 treatment. At last, we explored MCC950 as a potential drug for the treatment of periodontitis in vivo and in vitro.ResultsHere, we showed that the number of osteoclast precursors, osteoclast differentiation and alveolar bone loss were reduced in NLRP3^KO mice compared with WT littermates, by using ligature‐induced periodontitis model. Next, MCC950, a specific inhibitor of the NLRP3 inflammasome, was used to inhibit osteoclast precursors differentiation into osteoclast. Further, we used Lysm‐Cre/Rosa^nTnG mice to demonstrate that MCC950 decreases the number of Lysm‐Cre⁺ osteoclast precursors in ligature‐induced periodontitis. At last, treatment with MCC950 significantly suppressed alveolar bone loss with reduced IL‐1β activation and osteoclast differentiation in ligature‐induced periodontitis.ConclusionOur findings reveal that NLRP3 regulates alveolar bone loss in ligature‐induced periodontitis by promoting osteoclastic differentiation.     

Sesquiterpenoids from Chloranthus henryi and Their Anti‐neuroinflammatory Activities

Five new and seven known mono‐sesquiterpenoids ( 1 – 5 and 6 – 12 , resp.) together with five known lindenane‐type disesquiterpenoids, 13 – 17 , were isolated from the whole plant of Chloranthus henryi. Based on spectroscopic methods, the new structures were established to be (5S,6R,8S,10R)‐6‐hydroxyeudesma‐4(15),7(11)‐diene‐12,8‐olide ( 1 ), 6α‐hydroxyeudesma‐4(15),7(11),8(9)‐triene‐12,8‐olide ( 2 ), 8,12‐epoxy‐1β‐hydroxyeudesma‐4(15),7,11‐trien‐6‐one ( 3 ), 12‐oxochloraniolide A ( 4 ), and (4α)‐8‐hydroxy‐12‐norcardina‐6,8,10‐trien‐11‐one ( 5 ), respectively. Among the isolates, compound 2 , zederone epoxide ( 8 ), spicachlorantin G ( 13 ), chloramultilide A ( 14 ), shizukaol B ( 15 ), and spicachlorantin B ( 17 ) showed significant anti‐neuroinflammatory effects by inhibiting nitric‐oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐stimulated murine BV‐2 microglial cells with relatively low cytotoxicity.