Integration of mammalian, microbial and drosophila procedures for evaluating chemical mutagens.

cis-Platinum(II)diamminodichloride (PDD), an anti-tumor agent, induced auxotrophic mutations in Escherichia coli, some of which were reverted to prototrophy by exposure to PDD, 2-aminopurine (2-AP), and N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitroguanidine (NTG), but not ICR derivatives. Similarly, various 2-AP-, NTG-, and ultraviolet light-induced auxotrophs were reverted to prototrophy by PDD. Some PDD-induced auxotrophs carried nonsense mutations and others could be phenotypically suppressed by growth with streptomycin. Although these findings suggest that PDD promotes base substitutions, this mutagen may also cause base subtractions because (like NTG)it induced, at reduced frequency, reversion to prototrophy of certain ICR-induced auxotrophs. Isomeric trans-platinum(II)diamminodichloride, which lacks anti-tumor activity, was an ineffective mutagen. Near-optimal conditions for PDD-induced mutagenesis entailed prolonged cultivation with low levels of mutagen where the frequency of forward mutation to auxotrophy was 10⁻³ and that of a selected trp isolate to prototrophy was 10⁻².     

Incorporation of methionine-[methyl-2H3] and mevalonic acid-[2-14C,(4R)-4-3H1] into Phycomyces blakesleeanus sterols

Ergosterol, episterol, 4α-methyl-5α-ergosta-8,24(28)-dien-3β-ol and 24-methylene-24,25-dihydrolanosterol, isolated from Phycomyces blakesleeanus grown in the presence of methionine-[methyl-²H₃], each contained two deuterium atoms; lanosterol, however, was unlabelled. The ¹⁴C:³H atomic ratio of the following sterols isolated from P. blakesleeanus grown in the presence of mevalonic acid-[2-¹⁴C,(4R)-4-³H₁], was: ergosterol, 5:3; episterol, 5:4; ergosta-5,7,24(28)-trien-3β-ol, 5:3; 4α-methyl-5α-ergosta-8,24(28)-dien-3β-ol, 5:4; 24-methylene-24,25-dihydrolanosterol, 6:5; lanosterol, 6:5. The significance of these results in terms of ergosterol biosynthesis is discussed.     

Biotransformation of pregnenolone - 7alpha-3H, progesterone - 7alpha-3H and dehydroepiandrosterone - 7alpha-3H by porcine fetal and maternal adrenal homogenate preparations.

The biotransformation of pregnenolone-7alpha-3H and of progesterone-7alpha-3H by porcine fetal and maternal adrenal homogenates at 56 and 112 days of pregnancy and of dehydroepiandrosterone-7alpha-3H by fetal adrenal homogenates has been investigated in vitro. Both pregnenolone-7alpha-3H and progesterone-7alpha-3H were metabolized extensively by maternal adrenal preparations, the principal radioactive metabolites isolated being cortisol, corticosterone, 11-deoxycortisol, deoxycorticosterone, 11beta-hydroxyprogesterone and androstenedione. In addition, 17alpha-hydroxyprogesterone, 20alpha-dihydroprogesterone and cortisone were formed from both substrates and 17alpha-hydroxypregnenolone and progesterone were formed from pregnenolone. Although essentially the same radioactive metabolites were isolated after incubation of fetal adrenal glands with pregnenolone-7alpha-3H or progesterone-7alpha-3H, a greater proportion of the radioactivity was associated with corticosteroids at 112 days of pregnancy than at 56 days. 11beta-Hydroxyandrostenedione and androstenedione were isolated and identified together with an unknown polar metabolite, after incubation of fetal adrenal tissue with dehydroepiandrosterone-7alpha-3H. These results are discussed in relation to feto-placental steroid biosynthesis and metabolism and the role of the fetal adrenal in the initiation of parturition in the pig.     

Cryo-EM structure of the fatty acid reductase LuxC–LuxE complex provides insights into bacterial bioluminescence

The discovery of reduced flavin mononucleotide and fatty aldehydes as essential factors of light emission facilitated study of bacterial luminescence. Although the molecular mechanisms underlying bacterial luminescence have been studied for more than 60 years, the structure of the bacterial fatty acid reductase complex remains unclear. Here, we report the cryo-EM structure of the Photobacterium phosphoreum fatty acid reductase complex LuxC–LuxE to a resolution of 2.79 Å. We show that the active site Lys238/Arg355 pair of LuxE is >30 Å from the active site Cys296 of LuxC, implying that catalysis relies on a large conformational change. Furthermore, mutagenesis and biochemical experiments support that the L-shaped cleft inside LuxC plays an important role in substrate binding and reaction. We obtained a series of mutants with significantly improved activity as measured by in vitro bioluminescence assays and demonstrated that the double mutant W111A/F483K displayed the highest activity (370% of the WT). Our results indicated that the activity of LuxC significantly affects the bacterial bioluminescence reaction. Finally, we expressed this mutated lux operon in Escherichia coli but observed that the in vivo concentrations of ATP and NADPH limited the enzyme activity; thus, we conclude that the luminous intensity mainly depends on the level of metabolic energy.     

合成己酸乙酯脂肪酶产生菌的筛选及产酶条件

从２７株脂肪酶产生菌中筛选到能由乙醇和己酸合成己酸乙酯的菌株８株。其中Ｒｈｉｚｏｐｕｓｓｐ．Ｈ－３菌株脂肪酶活力为５０－６０ｕ／ｍｌ,全细胞在有机溶剂中的酯化率可达己酸的９１％。Ｈ３产酶的最适碳源为淀粉或葡萄糖。６％黄豆饼粉加４％蛋白陈复合氮源有利于酶活力的增加。     

Plasmodium berghei leucine-rich repeat protein 1 downregulates protein phosphatase 1 activity and is required for efficient oocyst development

Protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) is a key enzyme for Plasmodium development. However, the detailed mechanisms underlying its regulation remain to be deciphered. Here, we report the functional characterization of the Plasmodium berghei leucine-rich repeat protein 1 (PbLRR1), an orthologue of SDS22, one of the most ancient and conserved PP1 interactors. Our study shows that PbLRR1 is expressed during intra-erythrocytic development of the parasite, and up to the zygote stage in mosquitoes. PbLRR1 can be found in complex with PbPP1 in both asexual and sexual stages and inhibits its phosphatase activity. Genetic analysis demonstrates that PbLRR1 depletion adversely affects the development of oocysts. PbLRR1 interactome analysis associated with phospho-proteomics studies identifies several novel putative PbLRR1/PbPP1 partners. Some of these partners have previously been characterized as essential for the parasite sexual development. Interestingly, and for the first time, Inhibitor 3 (I3), a well-known and direct interactant of Plasmodium PP1, was found to be drastically hypophosphorylated in PbLRR1-depleted parasites. These data, along with the detection of I3 with PP1 in the LRR1 interactome, strongly suggest that the phosphorylation status of PbI3 is under the control of the PP1–LRR1 complex and could contribute (in)directly to oocyst development. This study provides new insights into previously unrecognized PbPP1 fine regulation of Plasmodium oocyst development through its interaction with PbLRR1.     

苹果柠檬酸合酶3基因家族成员鉴定及表达分析

柠檬酸合酶(citrate synthase 3, CS3)是细胞代谢途径中的关键酶之一,其活性调节着生物体的物质和能量代谢过程。本研究旨在从苹果全基因组中鉴定CS3基因家族成员,并进行生物信息学和表达模式分析,为研究苹果CS3基因的潜在功能提供理论基础。利用BLASTp基于GDR数据库鉴定苹果CS3家族成员,通过Pfam、SMART、MEGA5.0、clustalx.exe、ExPASy Proteomics Server、MEGAX、SOPMA、MEME和WoLF PSORT等软件分析CS3蛋白序列基本信息、亚细胞定位情况、结构域组成、系统进化关系以及染色体定位情况。利用酸含量的测定和实时荧光定量PCR (real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction, qRT-PCR)技术检测苹果6个CS3的组织表达和诱导表达特性。苹果CS3基因家族包含6个成员,这些CS3蛋白包括473−608个不等的氨基酸残基,等电点分布在7.21−8.82。亚细胞定位结果显示CS3蛋白分别定位在线粒体和叶绿体。系统进化分析可将其分为3类,各亚家族基因数量分别为2个。染色体定位结果显示,CS3基因分布在苹果不同的染色体上。蛋白二级结构以a-螺旋为主,其次是无规则卷曲,b-转角所占比例最小。筛选的6个家族成员在不同苹果组织中均有表达,整体表达趋势从高到低依次为MdCS3.4相对表达含量最高,MdCS3.6次之,其他家族成员相对表达量依次为MdCS3.3>MdCS3.2>MdCS3.1>MdCS3.5。qRT-PCR结果显示,MdCS3.1和MdCS3.3基因在酸含量较低的‘成纪1号’果肉中相对表达量最高,酸含量较高的‘艾斯达’果肉中MdCS3.2和MdCS3.3基因相对表达量最高。因此,本研究对不同苹果品种中CS3基因相对表达量进行了检测,并分析了其在苹果果实酸合成过程中的作用。结果表明,CS3基因在不同苹果品种中的相对表达量存在差异,为后续研究苹果品质形成机制提供了参考。