Adhesion of osteoblast-like cell on silicon-doped TiO2 film prepared by cathodic arc deposition

Silicon-doped TiO₂ (Si–TiO₂) and pure TiO₂ films were deposited on titanium substrates by cathodic arc deposition technique. The surface characteristics of the films, such as surface topography, elemental composition and wettability, were studied. About 4.6 % Si was incorporated into the Si–TiO₂ films with a water contact angle of about 83°. The adhesive behaviors of osteoblast-like MG63 cells on both films were investigated through cell counting assay, immunocytochemistry, real-time PCR and western blotting analysis. Cells cultured on the Si–TiO₂ films had a greater cellular viability, stronger cytoskeleton and focal adhesion, and more cellular spreading than those on the pure TiO₂ films. Moreover, the expression levels of integrin β1 and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) genes, FAK and the phosphorylation of FAK proteins were up-regulated in cells cultured on the Si–TiO₂ films. These results indicated that the Si–TiO₂ films possess significantly enhanced cytocompatibility and provide potential solutions for the surface modification of implants in the future.     

AMPK regulates homeostasis of invasion and viability in trophoblasts by redirecting glucose metabolism: Implications for pre‐eclampsia

Pre‐eclampsia (PE) is deemed an ischemia‐induced metabolic disorder of the placenta due to defective invasion of trophoblasts during placentation; thus, the driving role of metabolism in PE pathogenesis is largely ignored. Since trophoblasts undergo substantial glycolysis, this study aimed to investigate its function and regulatory mechanism by AMPK in PE development. Metabolomics analysis of PE placentas was performed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Trophoblast‐specific AMPKα1‐deficient mouse placentas were generated to assess morphology. A mouse PE model was established by Reduced Uterine Perfusion Pressure, and placental AMPK was modulated by nanoparticle‐delivered A769662. Trophoblast glucose uptake was measured by 2‐NBDG and 2‐deoxy‐d‐[³H] glucose uptake assays. Cellular metabolism was investigated by the Seahorse assay and GC–MS.PE complicated trophoblasts are associated with AMPK hyperactivation due not to energy deficiency. Thereafter, AMPK activation during placentation exacerbated PE manifestations but alleviated cell death in the placenta. AMPK activation in trophoblasts contributed to GLUT3 translocation and subsequent glucose metabolism, which were redirected into gluconeogenesis, resulting in deposition of glycogen and accumulation of phosphoenolpyruvate; the latter enhanced viability but compromised trophoblast invasion. However, ablation of AMPK in the mouse placenta resulted in decreased glycogen deposition and structural malformation. These data reveal a novel homeostasis between invasiveness and viability in trophoblasts, which is mechanistically relevant for switching between the ‘go’ and ‘grow’ cellular programs.

Pre‐eclampsia (PE) is associated with trophoblast AMPK hyperactivation, presumably due to LKB1 phosphorylation, and glucose uptake is consequently increased via trafficking of GLUT3 from the cytosol to the plasma membrane. Such translocation enhances glycolytic flux and redirects glucose metabolic intermediates into gluconeogenesis, resulting in PEP accumulation, which not only benefits cell survival but also suppresses invasion by repressing MMPs, and thus in turn modulates switching between the ‘go’ and ‘grow’ cellular programs.     

基于内源信号的脑光学成像系统的研制

基于内源信号的脑光学成像技术（ｏｐｔｉｃａｌ ｉｍａｇｉｎｇ ｂａｓｅｄ ｏｎ ｉｎｔｒｉｎｓｉｃ ｓｉｇｎａｌｓ） 是近年出现的研究脑功能的新技术。它因具有高空间分辨率,可连续长时间记录,使用简便, 费用较低等特点,成为在视觉,听觉以及其他各种脑功能研究的有力工具。本文介绍了国内第一套脑光学成像系统的设计和研制,以及用于视觉研究皮层功能方位柱研究的初步结果。     

Lupane‐ and Friedelane‐Type Triterpenoids from Celastrus stylosus

Two new triterpenoids, 30‐hydroxylup‐20(29)‐ene 3β‐caffeate ( 1 ) and 24‐nor‐friedelan‐6α,10‐dihydroxy‐1,2‐dioxo‐4,7‐dien‐29‐oic acid ( 2 ), together with eight known compounds 3 – 10 , were isolated from the roots of Celastrus stylosus. The structures of these compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analyses. To the best of our knowledge, this represents the first study on the chemical constituents of C. stylosus. The antiproliferative activities of the triterpenoids against six human cancer cell lines (PANC‐1, A549, PC‐3, HepG2, SGC‐7901, and HCCLM3) were evaluated. Compounds 3, 4 , and 10 exhibited comparable activities against PC‐3 and HCCLM3 cell lines as the positive control taxol.     

A Simple Electrochemical Route to Access Amorphous Mixed‐Metal Hydroxides for Supercapacitor Electrode Materials

Supercapacitors or electrochemical capacitors, as energy storage devices, require very stable positive electrode materials for useful applications. Although most positive electrodes are based on crystalline mixed‐metal hydroxides, their pseudocapacitors usually perform poorly or have a short cycle life. High activities can be achieved with amorphous phases. Methods to produce amorphous materials are also not typically amenable towards mixed‐metal compositions. It is demonstrated that electrochemistry in an ambient environment can be used to produce a series of amorphous mixed‐metal hydroxides with a homogeneous distribution of metals for use as positive electrode materials in a supercapacitor. The integrated performance of the amorphous ternary mixed‐metal hydroxide pseudocapacitor is superior to that of crystalline materials. The amorphous Ni‐Co‐Fe hydroxide supercapacitor is characterized by a long‐term cycling stability that retained 94% of its capacity after 20 000 cycles. This is much higher than the cycle life of crystalline devices. These results show the broad applicability of this methodology towards new electrode materials for high‐performance supercapacitors, especially amorphous mixed‐metal hydroxides, as advanced electrode materials.     

甘蔗KNOX基因(Sckn1)的电子克隆及生物信息学分析

KNOX基因对植物顶端分生组织的形成和维持有至关重要的作用。本文选择功能已知的水稻KNOX基因(OSH1,Oskn1)为参考序列,采用电子克隆技术克隆到甘蔗中与OSH1同源的一个KNOX基因Sckn1,并通过生物信息学分析预测该基因的结构、功能。结果表明:该基因包含一个1 071 bp的开放阅读框,编码356个氨基酸,分子量为39.36 kD,理论等电点为6.47。该基因很可能定位于细胞核,起转录调控作用,序列比对发现该基因编码蛋白与高粱、玉米、小米草等KN1蛋白高度相似。以上分析结果为进一步研究Sckn1基因的功能奠定了坚实的基础。     

CYC类基因在被子植物花发育中的研究进展

CYCLOIDEA(CYC)类基因属于TCP基因家族成员,在花发育过程中具有重要作用。CYC类基因在被子植物进化过程中发生基因复制事件,形成CYC1、CYC2和CYC3三大分支,其中CYC2分支成员在花对称性形成方面具有主要调控作用。CYC1和CYC3分支成员开展研究较少。综述了国内外CYC类基因的研究现状及其存在问题,并对CYC类基因的研究前景做了展望。     

Nonrigid Registration Regularized by Shape Information: Application to Atlas Construction of Cardiac CT Images

Cardiac atlases play an important role in the computer-aided diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases, in particular they need to deal with large and highly variable image datasets. In this paper, we propose a new nonrigid registration algorithm incorporating shape information, to produce comprehensive atlases. For one thing, the multiscale gradient orientation features of images are combined to form the construction of multifeature mutual information. Additionally, the shape information of multiple-objects in images is incorporated into the cost function for registration. We demonstrate the merits of the new registration algorithm on the 3D data sets of 15 patients. The experimental results show that the new registration algorithm can outperform the conventional intensity-based registration method. The obtained atlas can represent the cardiac structures more accurately.     

The atypical Rho GTPase,RhoU, regulates cell-adhesion molecules during cardiac morphogenesis

The vertebrate heart undergoes early complex morphologic events in order to develop key cardiac structures that regulate its overall function (Fahed et al., 2013). Although many genetic factors that participate in patterning the heart have been elucidated (Tu and Chi, 2012), the cellular events that drive cardiac morphogenesis have been less clear. From a chemical genetic screen to identify cellular pathways that control cardiac morphogenesis in zebrafish, we observed that inhibition of the Rho signaling pathways resulted in failure to form the atrioventricular canal and loop the linear heart tube. To identify specific Rho proteins that may regulate this process, we analyzed cardiac expression profiling data and discovered that RhoU was expressed at the atrioventricular canal during the time when it forms. Loss of RhoU function recapitulated the atrioventricular canal and cardiac looping defects observed in the ROCK inhibitor treated zebrafish. Similar to its family member RhoV/Chp (Tay et al., 2010), we discovered that RhoU regulates the cell junctions between cardiomyocytes through the Arhgef7b/Pak kinase pathway in order to guide atrioventricular canal development and cardiac looping. Inhibition of this pathway resulted in similar underlying cardiac defects and conversely, overexpression of a PAK kinase was able to rescue the loss of RhoU cardiac defect. Finally, we found that Wnt signaling, which has been implicated in atrioventricular canal development (Verhoeven et al., 2011), may regulate the expression of RhoU at the atrioventricular canal. Overall, these findings reveal a cardiac developmental pathway involving RhoU/Arhgef7b/Pak signaling, which helps coordinate cell junction formation between atrioventricular cardiomyocytes to promote cell adhesiveness and cell shapes during cardiac morphogenesis. Failure to properly form these cell adhesions during cardiac development may lead to structural heart defects and mechanistically account for the cellular events that occur in certain human congenital heart diseases.