Regulated expression of the rat medium chain hydrolase gene in transgenic rape seed

Medium chain hydrolase (MCH) is an enzyme which regulates the chain length of fatty acid synthesis specifically in the mammary gland of the rat. During lactation, MCH interacts with fatty acid synthase (FAS) to cause premature release of acyl chains, thus providing medium chain fatty acids for synthesis of milk fat. In this study we have investigated the ability of rat MCH to interact with the phylogenetically more distant FAS structure present in plant systems and to cause a perturbation of fatty acid synthesis. Inin vitro experiments, addition of purified MCH to rapeseed homogenates was found to cause a significant perturbation of fatty acid synthesis towards medium chain length products. The rat MCH gene was expressed in transgenic oilseed rape using a seed specific rape acyl carrier protein (ACP) promoter and a rape ACP plastid targeting sequence. Western analysis showed MCH protein to be present in transgenic seed and for its expression to be developmentally regulated in concert with storage lipid synthesis. The chimaeric preprotein was correctly processed and immunogold labelling studies confirmed MCH to be localized within plastid organelles. However, fatty acid analysis of oil from MCH-expressing rape seed showed no significant differences to that from control seed.     

Production of pectin lyase by Penicillium griseoroseum as a function of the inoculum and culture conditions

Optimum activity of an extracellular pectin lyase produced by Penicillium griseoroseum in submerged culture was after 120 h using 0.1% (w/v) citrus pectin as substrate. Sucrose at 0.1% (w/v) stimulated enzyme production and citrus pectin gave the highest activity of enzyme per unit growth.     

Assessment of Morpho-Physiological and Biochemical Responses of Perennial Ryegrass to Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) Application Under Salinity Stress Using Multivariate Analyses Techniques

Journal of Plant Growth Regulation - Salinity stress is one of the most important global problems that afflicts and limits the growth and development of turfgrass in arid and semi-arid areas....     

Influence of seasonal variation to the population growth and ecophysiology of Typha domingensis (Typhaceae)

Journal of Plant Research - Precipitation is an important climatic element that defines the hydrological regime, and its seasonal variation produces annual dry and wet periods in some areas. This...     

定量分析调控人类免疫缺陷病毒潜伏与激活的动力学机制

目的 治疗艾滋病最大的障碍在于无法根除人类免疫缺陷病毒（HIV）潜伏于人体细胞所形成的病毒存储库。构建描述病毒存储库建立分子机制的动力学模型需考虑生物体内的噪声环境和多重影响因素,本文通过一种全新的动力学结构分解方法将随机微分方程的确定性部分与随机性噪声分开,从而在仅需分析常微分方程不动点的情况下即可判断不同药物靶点的作用效果。方法 使用连续的随机微分方程构建了HIV转录过程的动力学模型,简化了描述系统所需方程的维度,增大了模型的可探索空间,在此基础上,通过计算得到的势能函数和概率分布函数直观表示病毒潜伏与激活的不同表达状态以及它们之间的关系。结果 定量分析了不同动力学参数对系统稳态和势函数的影响程度,分别得到了系统处于双稳态和单稳态时的参数范围,并将不同因素对动力系统分岔的影响程度与生物学实验结果对比,验证了本工作的理论基础。结论 本文突破了以往离散、随机的方法,可以通过常微分方程定量分析HIV转录调控的动力学机制,有利于推广到处理高维情况,进一步研究艾滋病在生物体内的发生发展,从而指导设计实验寻找临床上的治疗方案。     

Phytochemical Characterization of Cannabis sativa L. Roots from Northeastern Brazil

This article describes the phytochemical study of Cannabis sativa roots from northeastern Brazil. The dried plant material was pulverized and subjected to exhaustive maceration with ethanol at room temperature, obtaining the crude ethanolic extract (Cs-EEBR). The volatile compounds were analyzed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS), which allowed to identify 22 compounds by comparing the linear retention index (LRI), the similarity index (SI) and the fragmentation pattern of the constituents with the literature. By this technique the major compounds identified were: friedelan-3-one and β-sitosterol. In addition, two fractions were obtained from Cs-EEBR by classical column chromatography and preparative thin layer chromatography. These fractions were analyzed by NMR and IR and together with the mass spectrometry data allowed to identify the compounds: epifriedelanol, friedelan-3-one, β-sitosterol and stigmasterol. The study contributed to the phytochemical knowledge of Cannabis sativa, specifically the roots, as there are few reports on the chemical constituents of this part of the plant.     

Antiproliferative Activity and Ultrastructural Changes in Promastigote and Amastigote forms of Leishmania amazonensis Caused by Limonene-Acylthiosemicarbazide Hybrids

Leishmaniasis is a tropical zoonotic disease. It is found in 98 countries, with an estimated 1.3 million people being affected annually. During the life cycle, the Leishmania parasite alternates between promastigote and amastigote forms. The first line treatment for leishmaniasis are the pentavalent antimonials, such as N-methylglucamine antimoniate (Glucantime®) and sodium stibogluconate (Pentostam®). These drugs are commonly related to be associated with dangerous side effects such as cardiotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, and pancreatitis. Considering these aspects, this work aimed to obtain a new series of limonene-acylthiosemicarbazides hybrids as an alternative for the treatment of leishmaniasis. For this, promastigotes, axenic amastigotes, and intracellular amastigotes of Leishmania amazonensis were used in the antiproliferative assay; J774-A1 macrophages for the cytotoxicity assay; and electron microscopy techniques were performed to analyze the morphology and ultrastructure of parasites. ATZ−S-04 compound showed the best result in both tests. Its IC₅₀, in promastigotes, axenic amastigotes and intracellular amastigotes was 0.35±0.08 μM, 0.49±0.06 μM, and 15.90±2.88 μM, respectively. Cytotoxicity assay determined a CC₅₀ of 16.10±1.76 μM for the same compound. By electron microscopy, it was observed that ATZ−S-04 affected mainly the Golgi complex, in addition to morphological changes in promastigote forms of L. amazonensis.     

Evaluation of Probiotic Properties of Novel Brazilian Lactiplantibacillus plantarum Strains

Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins - Beneficial effects of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains have been widely reported. Knowing that the effects of probiotic bacteria are strain-dependent,...