Alleviation of the detrimental effect of water deficit on wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) growth by an indole acetic acid-producing endophytic fungus

Plant and Soil - Endophytic fungi colonization is an eco-friendly strategy to respond to environmental stresses and confer tolerance to the host plant. Here, the responses of wheat plant inoculated...     

江苏菜豆同工凝集素的分离纯化及性质研究

江苏菜豆经酸水(PH2.0)抽提,硫酸铵分级沉淀,分离植物血球凝集素(PHA-P),分子量为128000的糖蛋白,活性回收率在80％以上,PHA-P经SP-sephadexc-50离子交换层析,分成L_4,L_3E_1,L_2E_2,L_1E_3,和E_4同工凝集素。 L_4和E_4等电点为5.4和6.5。亚基分子量分别是31000和33000,并有类似的氨基酸组成。PAGE分析为单一蛋白带。红细胞凝集活性随电泳迁移速度的加快而增强,促淋性细胞分裂活性则减弱。E_4血凝活性受CalNAc,EDTA抑制和Zn~(++)的促进。     

Structure of a Pancreatic ATP-Sensitive Potassium Channel

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A homogalacturonan from the radix of Platycodon grandiflorum and the anti-angiogenesis activity of poly-/oligogalacturonic acids derived therefrom

A polysaccharide, PGA4-3b, with an average molecular weight of 8.9 kDa estimated by high-performance gel-permeation chromatography (HPGPC), was isolated from radix of Platycodon grandiflorum (Jacq.) A. DC. Using monosaccharide analysis, methylation analysis and NMR spectroscopy, PGA4-3b was elucidated to be a linear poly-(1→4)-α-d-galactopyranosyluronic acid that contains no methyl ester groups. Partial acid hydrolysis of PGA4-3b yielded a series of poly- or oligogalacturonic acids with different degrees of polymerization (DP), that is, 4-3bde, 4-3bde-O-1, 4-3bde-O-2, 4-3bde-O-3, and 4-3bde-O-4. Cell tube formation inhibition tests with human microvascular endothelial cells (HMEC) for antiangiogenesis analysis showed that 4-3bde-O-1 and 4-3bde-O-2, the fractions with higher molecular weights, could inhibit tube formation, while the native PGA4-3b and low molecular weight fraction 4-3bde-O-3 and 4-3bde-O4 are ineffective. Moreover, 4-3bde-O-2 with DP 5-10 impaired cell tube formation in a dose-dependent way, suggesting its potential to be developed as an anti-angiogenesis drug. This is the first time oligogalacturonic acids are reported to show an anti-angiogenesis effect.     

A proteomic analysis of the chromoplasts isolated from sweet orange fruits [Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck

Here, a comprehensive proteomic analysis of the chromoplasts purified from sweet orange using Nycodenz density gradient centrifugation is reported. A GeLC-MS/MS shotgun approach was used to identify the proteins of pooled chromoplast samples. A total of 493 proteins were identified from purified chromoplasts, of which 418 are putative plastid proteins based on in silico sequence homology and functional analyses. Based on the predicted functions of these identified plastid proteins, a large proportion (～60%) of the chromoplast proteome of sweet orange is constituted by proteins involved in carbohydrate metabolism, amino acid/protein synthesis, and secondary metabolism. Of note, HDS (hydroxymethylbutenyl 4-diphosphate synthase), PAP (plastid-lipid-associated protein), and psHSPs (plastid small heat shock proteins) involved in the synthesis or storage of carotenoid and stress response are among the most abundant proteins identified. A comparison of chromoplast proteomes between sweet orange and tomato suggested a high level of conservation in a broad range of metabolic pathways. However, the citrus chromoplast was characterized by more extensive carotenoid synthesis, extensive amino acid synthesis without nitrogen assimilation, and evidence for lipid metabolism concerning jasmonic acid synthesis. In conclusion, this study provides an insight into the major metabolic pathways as well as some unique characteristics of the sweet orange chromoplasts at the whole proteome level.     

中国距水虻属四新种(双翅目,水虻科)(英文)

记述我国距水虻属Allognosta 4新种,基黑距水虻A.basinigra sp.nov.,彩旗距水虻A.caiqiana sp.nov.,大龙潭距水虻A.dalongtana sp.nov.,梁氏距水虻A.liangi sp.nov.。模式标本保存在中国农业大学昆虫博物馆。     

Serum metabolomic study for detecting biomarkers of non-traumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head

Introduction

Non-traumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (NTONFH) is a progressive disease, always leading to hip dysfunction if no early intervention was applied. The difficulty for early diagnosis of NTONFH is due to the slight symptoms at early stages as well as the high cost for screening patients by using magnetic resonance imaging.

Objective

The aim was to detect biomarkers of early-stage NTONFH, which was beneficial to the exploration of a cost-effective approach for the early diagnose of the disease.

Methods

Metabolomic approaches were employed in this study to detect biomarkers of early-stage NTONFH (22 patients, 23 controls), based on the platform of ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS) and the uses of multivariate statistic analysis, putative metabolite identification, metabolic pathway analysis and biomarker analysis.

Results

In total, 33 serum metabolites were found altered between NTONFH group and control group. In addition, glycerophospholipid metabolism and pyruvate metabolism were highly associated with the disease.

Conclusion

The combination of LysoPC (18:3), l-tyrosine and l-leucine proved to have a high diagnostic value for early-stage NTONFH. Our findings may contribute to the protocol for early diagnosis of NTONFH and further elucidate the underlying mechanisms of the disease.

     

Determination of zeranol and its metabolites in bovine muscle and liver by a chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay: compared to an ultraperformance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectroscopy method

A chemiluminescent enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA) was compared to an ultraperformance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectroscopy (UPLC‐MS/MS) procedure for the analysis of zeranol and its metabolites in bovine tissue samples. Apparent recoveries from fortified samples by both methods were comparable at 0.5–4.0 µg/kg and a significant correlation was obtained. For CLEIA analysis, hapten mimicking the analyte was first synthesized and conjugated with the carrier protein bovine serum albumin as the immunogen to produce monoclonal antibody. The obtained antibody showed extensive cross‐reactivity toward zeranol metabolites (zearalanone). The limit of detection of CLEIA and UPLC‐MS/MS was 0.05 µg/kg and 0.5 µg/kg, respectively. Recoveries of both methods for fortified samples were higher than 75.0% with the coefficient of variation less than 15%. These results indicated that the combination of screening with CLEIA and confirmation with UPLC‐MS/MS for zeranol and its metabolites would be a reliable method for a large number of bovine samples. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Expression and purification of the catalytic domain of human vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 for inhibitor screening

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), an endothelial cell-specific mitogen, can act in tumor-induced angiogenesis by binding to specific receptors on the surface of endothelial cells. One such receptor, VEGFR-2/KDR, plays a key role in VEGF-induced angiogenesis. Here, we expressed the catalytic domain of VEGFR-2 as a soluble active kinase using Bac-to-Bac expression system, and investigated correlations between VEGFR-2 activity and enzyme concentration, ATP concentration, substrate concentration and divalent cation type. We used these data to establish a convenient, effective and non-radioactive ELISA screening technique for the identification and evaluation of potential inhibitors for VEGFR-2 kinase. We screened 200 RTK target-based compounds and identified one (TKI-31) that potently inhibited VEGFR-2 kinase activity (IC50=0.596 microM). Treatment of NIH3T3/KDR cells with TKI-31 blocked VEGF-induced phosphorylation of KDR in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, TKI-31 dose-dependently suppressed HUVEC tube formation. Thus, we herein report a novel, efficient method for identifying VEGFR-2 kinase inhibitors and introduce one, TKI-31, that may prove to be a useful new angiogenesis inhibitor.