野桑蚕酚氧化酶原基因cDNA的分子克隆及其特征

酚氧化酶在昆虫的免疫防御机制中起着重要作用。利用RT-PCR和RACE方法,克隆了野桑蚕酚氧化酶原基因,获得了其cDNA序列。该序列长2 134 bp,含有一个2 082 bp的完整开放阅读框,编码一个由693个氨基酸残基组成的蛋白质。推导的氨基酸序列与其他鳞翅目昆虫PPO2基因相应氨基酸序列有较高的同源性,该序列具有它们的PPO基因所共有的典型特征。组织特异性表达分析表明了该基因在野桑蚕5龄幼虫的血细胞、体壁、头部、精巢、卵巢、脂肪体和中肠等组织及其不同的发育阶段均有表达。这些结果为进一步研究野桑蚕酚氧化酶原基因的功能提供了分子基础。     

中国境内稗(Echinochloa crus-galli)形态变异及其遗传和地理背景分析

采集了浙江、福建、江苏、湖南、湖北、四川、重庆、黑龙江、河南9个省的稗（Echinochloa crus-galli（L.）P.Beauv.）及其变种的33份种子,分别播种在相同的环境下,获得33个种群,测定了种群的16个形态性状,筛选出重复性好的9条ISSR引物,从33个种群中扩增出了109个位点。基于这些形态性状和ISSR位点信息,对33个种群先进行主成分分析,在此基础上再进行模糊均值聚类分析,探讨了它们的形态和遗传变化特点,及其与形态-遗传-地理背景三者之间的关系。主要结论如下：（1）33个种群可以鉴别出形态性状相对一致的4组,能够识别出西来稗（E.crus-galli var.zelayensis（Kunth）Farw.）、无芒稗（E.crus-galli var.mitis（Pursh）Peterm.）、细叶旱稗（E.crus-galli var.praticola Ohwi）;（2）基于109个位点信息对33个种群进行聚类分析得到了6组,部分组与形态聚类分组有一定的对应性;（3）33个稗草种群的遗传分化受地理背景因素的影响（r=0.684,n=33,P<0.001）;形态变异也有较明显的遗传背景因素（r=0.425,n=33,P<0.02）。在相对一致的稻田生境中,可能存在着形态上的趋同适应,使遗传上分化的组间在形态上又往往有交叉过渡,致使稗原变种（E.crus-galli var.crus-galli）、西来稗、无芒稗、短芒稗（E.crus-galli var.breviseta（Döll）Podp.）在形态上难以区别;（4）基于遗传和形态数据分析,发现细叶旱稗无论在形态上,还是遗传上,均形成了明显的一组,推测与该种长期适应于干旱生境有关,建议将细叶旱稗提升为种的水平,并将其命名为Echinochloa praticola（Ohwi）Guo S L,Lu Y L,Yin L P&Zou M Y。     

固氮施氏假单胞菌A1501四碳二羧酸结合蛋白DctP的功能及表达特性

【目的】研究施氏假单胞菌(Pseudomonas stutzeri)A1501四碳二羧酸结合蛋白Dct P的生物学功能和自身表达特性。【方法】构建结合蛋白编码基因dct P的非极性突变株,测定dct P突变株以不同四碳二羧酸(琥珀酸延、胡索酸、苹果酸)为唯一碳源时的生长情况和固氮酶活性;构建dct P基因启动子的融合表达载体dct P-lac Z,将其分别转入野生型A1501和ntr BC、rpo N和dct B突变株中,测定在不同四碳二羧酸为唯一碳源诱导条件下重组菌株中的β-半乳糖苷酶活性。【结果】dct P基因的突变使菌株丧失了四碳二羧酸的利用能力,影响了菌株的固氮酶活性;苹果酸、延胡索酸、琥珀酸对dct P-lac Z具有明显的诱导作用;在rpo N、ntr BC和dct B突变株中,dct P的表达量均显著降低。【结论】Dct P蛋白在四碳二羧酸的利用过程中起重要的作用,dct P基因的表达是Rpo N依赖型,可被四碳二羧酸诱导,受到调控蛋白Ntr BC/Dct B的协同调控。     

Prokaryotic expression, polyclonal antibody preparation, and sub-cellular localization analysis of Na+, K+-ATPase beta2 subunit

Na+, K+-ATPase beta2 subunit (NKA1b2) is not only a regulator of Na+, K+-ATPase, but also functions in the interaction between neuron and glia cells as a Ca2+-dependent adhesion molecule. To further study the function of NKA1b2, the anti-NKA1b2 polyclonal antibody was prepared to recognize the outer-membrane carboxyl portion segment of NKA1b2. The coding region for amino acids 190-290 at the carboxyl portion of NKA1b2 (NKA1b2-CP) was sub-cloned into the vector pGEX-4T-2 and introduced into the Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) cell for efficient soluble expression. The amino acid sequence of expressed protein was determined using mass spectrometry following Mascot analysis. After purification, GST-NKA-beta2-CP was used to immunize the adult rabbits following standard protocols. The produced antiserum could detect the NKA1b2 protein expressed not only in the prokaryotic cells (E. coli) but also in the eukaryotic cells (COS7) transfected with NKA1b2 expression vector (pEGFP-NKA1b2). Furthermore, the antiserum was used for determining the localization of NKA1b2 in primary culture of neonatal rat neurons using immunohistochemical technique. Results demonstrated that NKA1b2 was localized both in the cytoplasm and cellular membrane. The preparation of anti-NKA-beta2-CP polyclonal antibody will facilitate further functional study on NKA1b2.     

Shp2 plays an important role in acute cigarette smoke-mediated lung inflammation

Cigarette smoke (CS), the major cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, contains a variety of oxidative components that were implicated in the regulation of Src homology domain 2-containing protein tyrosine phosphatase 2 (Shp2) activity. However, the contribution of Shp2 enzyme to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease pathogenesis remains unclear. We investigated the role of Shp2 enzyme in blockading CS-induced pulmonary inflammation. Shp2 levels were assessed in vivo and in vitro. Mice (C57BL/6) or pulmonary epithelial cells (NCI-H292) were exposed to CS or cigarette smoke extract (CSE) to induce acute injury and inflammation. Lungs of smoking mice showed increased levels of Shp2, compared with those of controls. Treatment of lung epithelial cells with CSE showed elevated levels of Shp2 associated with the increased release of IL-8. Selective inhibition or knockdown of Shp2 resulted in decreased IL-8 release in response to CSE treatment in pulmonary epithelial cells. In comparison with CS-exposed wild-type mice, selective inhibition or conditional knockout of Shp2 in lung epithelia reduced IL-8 release and pulmonary inflammation in CS-exposed mice. In vitro biochemical data correlate CSE-mediated IL-8 release with Shp2-regulated epidermal growth factor receptor/Grb-2-associated binders/MAPK signaling. Our data suggest an important role for Shp2 in the pathological alteration associated with CS-mediated inflammation. Shp2 may be a potential target for therapeutic intervention for inflammation in CS-induced pulmonary diseases.     

TaCKX6-D1, the ortholog of rice OsCKX2, is associated with grain weight in hexaploid wheat

The cytokinin oxidase/dehydrogenase (CKX) gene plays a principal role in controlling cytokinin levels and has been shown to be a major quantitative trait locus (QTL) affecting grain number in rice. However, the function and evaluation of the haplotypes of the wheat CKX gene have yet to be illustrated. In this study, TaCKX6-D1, a wheat ortholog of rice OsCKX2, was cloned and its haplotype variants were determined to be significantly associated with the 1000-grain weight on the basis of linkage mapping, association analysis and gene expression analysis. Five TaCKX6-D1 haplotypes, designated a-e, were identified. An indel marker was developed to identify haplotype a, which was associated with higher grain weight. Haplotype a showed decreased expression relative to haplotype b in seeds at 8 d after pollination. Sequence variations among modern cultivars, landraces and wild species suggest a significant domestication signature at the TaCKX6-D1 locus in Chinese wheat germplasm. TaCKX6-D1 may serve as a useful gene for the breeding of high-yielding wheat. A strategy for allele mining and utilization of TaCKX6-D1 was proposed. Our study also sheds light on the mechanisms of grain development and domestication of wheat, as well as the functional divergence of orthologs in comparative genomics.     

Milk-derived Exosomes: Novel Regulatory Factors for Intestinal Health

Exosomes are a type of nano-sized extracellular vesicles, which play essential roles in many cellular processes, such as signal transduction, immune response and antigen presentation, and exist in diverse body fluids, including serum, saliva, urine, cerebrospinal fluid and milk. As the main source of nutrition for mammalian offsprings after birth, breast milk contains various nutrients and bioactive ingredients, which are crucial for animals’ immune system and intestinal development. As active molecules of milk, milk-derived exosomes are involved in complex secretory mechanisms and contain multiple nucleic acids, such as mRNAs and non-coding RNAs. Bioinformatics predicted that these exosomal nucleic acids may participate in immunoregulatory pathways. Moreover, milk-derived exosomal proteins are abundant and may enter target cells to exert regulatory functions, while the lipid components contribute significantly to maintaining the stability and uptake of exosomes. It has been published that milk-derived exosomes could resist animal gastrointestinal digestion in the physiological state, and could be further absorbed by the intestinal tract and participate in regulating the processes of intestinal cell proliferation, intestinal inflammation and diversity of gut microbiota, which are beneficial to animal intestines and have become novel regulatory factor for intestinal health in recent years. This article summarizes the formation, composition, and intestinal fate of milk-derived exosomes, and emphasizes their special functions on intestinal health in the animal field, which may provide a theoretical basis for the study of milk-derived exosomes.     

Transforming Growth Factor-β1 Induces Transdifferentiation of Fibroblasts into Myofibroblasts in Hypoxic Pulmonary Vascular Remodeling

The muscularization of non-muscular pulmonary arterioles is an important pathological feature of hypoxic pulmonary vascular remodeling. However, the origin of the cells involved in this process is still not well understood. The present study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that transforming growth factor-β1 （TGF-β1） can induce transdifferentiation of fibroblasts into myofibroblasts, which might play a key role in the muscularization of non-muscular pulmonary arterioles. It was found that mean pulmonary arterial pressure increased significantly after 7 d of hypoxia. Pulmonary artery remodeling index and fight ventricular hypertrophy became evident after 14 d of hypoxia. The distribution of nonmuscular, partially muscular, and muscular vessels was significantly different after 7 d of hypoxia. Immunocytochemistry results demonstrated that the expression of α-smooth muscle actin was increased in intra-acinar pulmonary arteries with increasing hypoxic time. TGF-β1 mRNA expression in pulmonary arterial walls was increased significantly after 14 d of hypoxia, but showed no obvious changes after 3 or 7 d of hypoxia. In pulmonary tunica adventitia and tunica media, TGF-β1 protein staining was poorly positive in control rats, but was markedly enhanced after 3 d of hypoxia, reaching its peak after 7 d of hypoxia. The myofibroblast phenotype was confirmed by electron microscopy, which revealed microfilaments and a well-developed rough endoplasmic reticulum. Taken together, our results suggested that TGF-β1 induces transdifferentiation of fibroblasts into myofibroblasts, which is important in hypoxic pulmonary vascular remodeling.     

共表达生长激素释放激素(GHRH)与垂体腺苷酸环化酶(PACAP)对动物生长的影响

生长激素释放激素(GHRH)与垂体腺苷酸环化酶(PACAP)在序列及功能方面均相似,且同为PACAP/胰高血糖素超家族成员．研究了这二者对生长激素释放的刺激作用,以及对动物生长的影响．构建了3个表达载体,pIRES1- GHRH-PACAP(P-G-P),pIRES1-GHRH(P-G) 及 pIRES1-PACAP(P-P),并转染到CHO细胞中,进行RT-PCR,Dot-ELISA以及Westen-blot检测．此外,给大鼠注射细胞上清表达产物,检测其生物学活性．注射8 h后,注射表达P-G-P上清的大鼠血清中IGF-Ⅰ浓度显著高于其他组(P < 0.05)．用PLGA微球包裹各种质粒,并注射到家兔后肢胫前肌．观察家兔生长情况,并于注射后0,15,30,45天时分别采集家兔血液,检测血液中IGF-Ⅰ浓度．结果显示,三质粒注射组动物体重变化及血液中IGF-Ⅰ浓度均高于对照组．注射后30天时,P-G-P组增重较对照组提高81% (P < 0.01),P-G组比对照组提高15%(P > 0.05),P-P组比对照组高7%(P > 0.05)．另一方面,P-G-P组动物血液中IGF-Ⅰ含量比分别比P-G、P-P及对照组提高16.68% (P > 0.05),17.14%(P > 0.05),50.46%(P < 0.05)．以上结果揭示：给动物注射PLGA微球包裹的共表达GHRH与PACAP质粒,可以增强动物体内生长激素(GH)的分泌,并促进动物生长．通过上述研究发现,肌肉注射PACAP表达质粒可以促进家兔的生长,PACAP和GHRH 共表达可以起到协同作用．这可能为动物的促生长研究提供新的方法．