象山港春季网采浮游植物的分布特征及其影响因素

根据2010年春季象山港28个站位的网采样品,共鉴定出浮游植物6门55属158种,其中硅藻135种(占总丰度的99.0%),甲藻18种,其余门类(金藻、蓝藻、绿藻和隐藻)5种。浮游植物平均丰度为35.29×104个/m3,其分布呈较强的斑块状(3.41×104—142.35×104个/m3),高值区位于横山至白石山水域及乌沙山电厂邻近水域。Shannon-Weiner多样性指数和Pielou均匀度指数总体表现为港口和港口外高于港中部和港底。琼氏圆筛藻(Coscinodiscus jonesianus)为绝对优势种,其丰度(284.97×103个/m3)占总丰度的80.8%。典范对应分析结果显示,影响浮游植物群落的主要因子依次为透明度、悬浮物、温度、水深和氮磷比。光照充足、电厂温排水适度温升、营养盐丰富和氮磷比合适(接近Redfield比值16)导致了港内微藻旺发。受径流、水交换和海洋开发等影响,象山港的理化参数表现了明显的斑块和梯度分布,这为浮游植物的生长提供了不同类型的生境,客观上造成了其分布的空间异质性。聚类、多维尺度和相似性分析结果表明,港底、港中部、港口至港口外区域间的群落组成差异较大。结合历史数据分析表明,象山港浮游植物丰度的升高及群落结构的改变与电厂运行、水产养殖、临港工业发展和滩涂围垦等海洋开发活动有关。     

二重雌雄异型异熟物种色木槭3种表型花的细胞形态学研究

二重雌雄异型异熟,即雌雄功能按雄-雌-雄顺序分别表达,是有花植物中较为少见的异熟机制.槭属(Acer)大部分物种具有二重雌雄异型异熟的开花物候,且第一期雄花与第二期在形态上差别较大.为深入探讨花发育模式对花形态和开花物候的影响,本文应用石蜡切片技术和光镜技术,对色木槭(Acer mono)各个发育时期的3种类型花(雄花...     

Neutral sphingomyelinase 2 is a key factor for PorB‐dependent invasion of Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Disseminated gonococcal infection (DGI) is a rare but serious complication caused by the spread of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in the human host. Gonococci associated with DGI mainly express the outer membrane protein PorB_IA that binds to the scavenger receptor expressed on endothelial cells (SREC‐I) and mediates bacterial uptake. We recently demonstrated that this interaction relies on intact membrane rafts that acquire SREC‐I upon attachment of gonococci and initiates the signalling cascade that finally leads to the uptake of gonococci in epithelial cells. In this study, we analysed the role of sphingomyelinases and their breakdown product ceramide. Gonococcal infection induced increased levels of ceramide that was enriched at bacterial attachment sites. Interestingly, neutral but not acid sphingomyelinase was mandatory for PorB_IA‐mediated invasion into host cells. Neutral sphingomyelinase was required to recruit the PI3 kinase to caveolin and thereby activates the PI3 kinase‐dependent downstream signalling leading to bacterial uptake. Thus, this study elucidates the initial signalling processes of bacterial invasion during DGI and demonstrates a novel role for neutral sphingomyelinase in the course of bacterial infections.     

Genetic structuring and recent demographic history of red pandas (Ailurus fulgens) inferred from microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA

Clarification of the genetic structure and population history of a species can shed light on the impacts of landscapes, historical climate change and contemporary human activities and thus enables evidence‐based conservation decisions for endangered organisms. The red panda (Ailurus fulgens) is an endangered species distributing at the edge of the Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau and is currently subject to habitat loss, fragmentation and population decline, thus representing a good model to test the influences of the above‐mentioned factors on a plateau edge species. We combined nine microsatellite loci and 551 bp of mitochondrial control region (mtDNA CR) to explore the genetic structure and demographic history of this species. A total of 123 individuals were sampled from 23 locations across five populations. High levels of genetic variation were identified for both mtDNA and microsatellites. Phylogeographic analyses indicated little geographic structure, suggesting historically wide gene flow. However, microsatellite‐based Bayesian clustering clearly identified three groups (Qionglai‐Liangshan, Xiaoxiangling and Gaoligong‐Tibet). A significant isolation‐by‐distance pattern was detected only after removing Xiaoxiangling. For mtDNA data, there was no statistical support for a historical population expansion or contraction for the whole sample or any population except Xiaoxiangling where a signal of contraction was detected. However, Bayesian simulations of population history using microsatellite data did pinpoint population declines for Qionglai, Xiaoxiangling and Gaoligong, demonstrating significant influences of human activity on demography. The unique history of the Xiaoxiangling population plays a critical role in shaping the genetic structure of this species, and large‐scale habitat loss and fragmentation is hampering gene flow among populations. The implications of our findings for the biogeography of the Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau, subspecies classification and conservation of red pandas are discussed.     

KCTD10 interacts with proliferating cell nuclear antigen and its down‐regulation could inhibit cell proliferation

A novel gene (GenBank accession No. AF113208) named KCTD10 (potassium channel tetramerisation domain‐containing 10) was cloned from our 5300 EST database of human aorta cDNA library. Computational analysis showed that KCTD10 cDNA is 2,638 bp long, encoding 313 amino acids with a proliferating cell nuclear antigen binding motif, mapped to chromosome 12q24.11 with 7 exons, ubiquitously expressed in all 12 tested normal tissues and 7 of 8 tested tumor cell lines from MTN membranes by Northern blot. Nuclear localization of KCTD10 was observed in A549 cells. Yeast two‐hybrid analysis and immunoprecipitation assay showed that KCTD10 can interact with PCNA. In A549 cells, KCTD10 down‐regulation could inhibit cell proliferation, but its over‐expression could not influence cell proliferation. The results suggest that KCTD10 may be associated with DNA synthesis and cell proliferation. J. Cell. Biochem. 106: 409–413, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

青藏高原多年冻土区积雪对沼泽、草甸浅层土壤水热过程的影响

有无积雪覆盖下浅层土壤水热过程是青藏高原多年冻土区水能循环中的一个重要不确定因素.为了研究积雪覆盖对高寒沼泽、草甸浅层土壤水热过程的影响,在青藏高原多年冻土区选择了典型的有无积雪覆盖的沼泽、草甸建立观测场,观测浅层土壤的温度和水分状况.通过分别研究积雪对高寒沼泽、草甸浅层土壤温度和水分的影响,结果表明:高寒沼泽、草甸在有积雪覆盖下浅层土壤开始冻结和消融的时间都有所滞后,且冻结持续时间相应有所增加.由于积雪覆盖,浅层土壤温度变化速率略有减小而水分变化速率略有增加,积雪起到了抑制土壤温度变化速率和促进土壤水分变化速率的作用.积雪覆盖对秋季冻结过程和夏季融化过程浅层土壤的温度和水分的影响明显大于冬季冻结降温过程和春季升温过程,且对融化过程的影响较冻结过程明显.通过对比分析有无雪盖沼泽和草甸土壤,说明积雪的覆盖对沼泽土壤温度的影响要大于草甸土壤,对土壤水分融升过程的影响大于冻降过程,且对沼泽浅层土壤的影响大于草甸浅层土壤.     

Effects of Catechin Enriched Green Tea on Body Composition

Obesity is a major health problem in the developed and developing world. Many “functional” foods and ingredients are advocated for their effects on body composition but few have consistent scientific support for their efficacy. However, an increasing amount of mechanistic and clinical evidence is building for green tea (GT). This experiment was therefore undertaken to study the effects of a high‐catechin GT on body composition in a moderately overweight Chinese population. In a randomized placebo‐controlled trial, 182 moderately overweight Chinese subjects, consumed either two servings of a control drink (C; 30 mg catechins, 10 mg caffeine/day), one serving of the control drink and one serving of an extra high‐catechin GT1 (458 mg catechins, 104 mg caffeine/day), two servings of a high‐catechin GT2 (468 mg catechins, 126 mg caffeine/day) or two servings of the extra high‐catechin GT3 (886 mg catechins, 198 mg caffeine/day) for 90 days. Data were collected at 0, 30, 60, and 90 days. We observed a decrease in estimated intra‐abdominal fat (IAF) area of 5.6 cm² in the GT3 group. In addition, we found decreases of 1.9 cm in waist circumference and 1.2 kg body weight in the GT3 group vs. C (P < 0.05). We also observed reductions in total body fat (GT2, 0.7 kg, P < 0.05) and body fat % (GT1, 0.6%, P < 0.05). We conclude that consumption of two servings of an extra high‐catechin GT leads to improvements in body composition and reduces abdominal fatness in moderately overweight Chinese subjects.     

Dendritic Cells Pulsed with Exosomes in Combination with PD-1 Antibody Increase the Efficacy of Sorafenib in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Model

Advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has limited therapeutic options. Immunotherapy is a promising treatment, while sorafenib is a first-line drug-based treatment for advanced HCC. However, the efficacy of sorafenib and immunotherapy in combination, have not been clearly evaluated. Sorafenib treatment has been shown to promote immunosuppression by increasing hypoxia in orthotopic HCC models. Here, we found that sorafenib treatment in mice with orthotopic HCC increased the expression of inhibitor programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) and T-regulatory cells in tumor tissues. We pulsed dendritic cells with exosomes derived from tumor cells (DC-TEX) and found that the number of T-regulatory cells decreased and the number of CD8+T cells increased. However, combining DC-TEX and sorafenib did not prolong survival in these mice. Moreover, we found that the number of PD-1+CD8+T cells significantly increased after DC-TEX treatment. Therefore, we next added PD-1 antibody (PD-1 Ab) to the treatment regimen to block the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway, and found that the exhausted CD8+T cells were restored, without affecting the number of T-regulatory cells. Thus, our data suggest that the combination of DC-TEX and PD-1 Ab enhanced the efficacy of sorafenib, but treatment with either DC-TEX or PD-1 Ab alone, did not.     

Inbreeding and inbreeding avoidance in wild giant pandas

Inbreeding can have negative consequences on population and individual fitness, which could be counteracted by inbreeding avoidance mechanisms. However, the inbreeding risk and inbreeding avoidance mechanisms in endangered species are less studied. The giant panda, a solitary and threatened species, lives in many small populations and suffers from habitat fragmentation, which may aggravate the risk of inbreeding. Here, we performed long‐term observations of reproductive behaviour, sampling of mother–cub pairs and large‐scale genetic analyses on wild giant pandas. Moderate levels of inbreeding were found in 21.1% of mating pairs, 9.1% of parent pairs and 7.7% of panda cubs, but no high‐level inbreeding occurred. More significant levels of inbreeding may be avoided passively by female‐biased natal dispersal rather than by breeding dispersal or active relatedness‐based mate choice mechanisms. The level of inbreeding in giant pandas is greater than expected for a solitary mammal and thus warrants concern for potential inbreeding depression, particularly in small populations isolated by continuing habitat fragmentation, which will reduce female dispersal and increase the risk of inbreeding.     

香蕉MuNPR1-1基因的克隆与表达分析

利用同源序列法克隆了中山大蕉中的MuNPR1-1和MePR-1基因,RT-PCR分析了MuNPR1-1和MePR-1基因对香蕉枯萎病4号小种的应答反应,结果表明抗病的中山大蕉幼苗叶片经香蕉枯萎病4号小种接菌诱导后,MuNPR1-1基因的表达水平在诱导后12 h达到最高,高表达持续到24 h,在72 h降到接近起始状态,病原相关蛋白MePR-1基因的表达在24 h达到最高,48 h开始下降,72 h又恢复到起始水平。而感病的粉蕉中MuNPR1-1在0、12和24 h无明显变化,在48-72 h表达增加,病原相关蛋白MePR-1基因的表达在0、12和24 h无明显变化,在48-72 h有增加,但表达强度低于中山大蕉。这表明了抗病的中山大蕉的MuNPR1-1基因对病原菌信号分子的反应比感病品种粉蕉敏感,有助于激活下游防卫基因的表达。