What Can Medicine Learn from the Human DNA Sequence?

The cooperation of biochemistry with clinical medicine consists of two overlapping temporal phases. Phase 1 of the cooperation, which still is not finished, is characterized by joint work on the pathogenesis and diagnostics of systemic metabolic diseases, whereas in phase 2 the cooperation on tissue and cell specific as well as on molecular diseases is prevailing. In view of the conceptual revolution and shift in paradigm, which biochemistry and medicine are presently experiencing, the content of cooperation between the two disciplines will profoundly change. It will become deeply influenced by the results of the research into the human genome and human proteome. Biochemistry will strongly be occupied to relate the thousands of protein coding genes to the structure and function of the encoded proteins, and medicine will be concerned in finding new protein markers for diagnostics, to identify novel drug targets, and to investigate, for example, the proteomes of the variety of tumors to aid tumor classification, to mention only a few areas of interest which medicine will have in the progress of human genome research. The review summarizes the recent achievements in sequencing the human DNA as published in February 2001 by the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium and Celera Genomics and discusses their significance in respect to the further development of molecular, in particular genetic, medicine as an interdisciplinary field of the modern clinical sciences. Only biochemistry can provide the conceptual and experimental basis for the causal understanding of biological mechanisms as encoded in the genome of an organism.     

Characterization of a stress-induced,developmentally regulated gene family from soybean

We describe a family of stress-induced, developmentally regulated soybean genes for which cDNAs have been obtained from two different cultivars (Glycine max cv. Mandarin and Glycine max cv. Williams). The mRNAs corresponding to these cDNAs, called SAM22 and H4, respectively, accumulate predominantly in the roots of soybean seedlings but are present at high levels in the roots and leaves of mature plants. SAM22 accumulation is especially dramatic in senescent leaves. In addition, SAM22 accumulation can be induced in young leaves by wounding or by transpiration-mediated uptake of salicylic acid, methyl viologen, fungal elicitor, hydrogen peroxide or sodium phosphate (pH 6.9). Taken together, these data indicate that the genes corresponding to SAM22 and H4 are induced by various stresses and developmental cues. Southern blot analysis indicates that multiple copies of sequences related to SAM22 exist in the soybean genome. We also show that the nucleotide sequences of the cDNAs corresponding to SAM22 and H4 are 86% identical at the nucleotide level to each other and 70% identical at the amino acid level to the disease resistance response proteins of Pisum sativum.     

A Reexamination of the Phylogenetic Position of Callimico (Primates) Incorporating New Mitochondrial DNA Sequence Data

The New World monkeys are divided into two main groups, Callitrichidae and Cebidae. Callimico goeldii shares traits with both the Cebidae and the Callitrichidae. Recent morphological phyletic studies generally place Callimico as the most basal member of the Callitrichidae. In contrast, genetic studies (immunological, restriction fragment, and sequence data) have consistently placed Callimico somewhere within the Callitrichidae, not basal to this clade. A DNA sequence data set from the terminal 236 codons of the mitochondrial ND4 gene and the tRNA^His, tRNA^Ser, and tRNA^Leu genes was generated to clarify the position of Callimico. The sequences of 887 base pairs were analyzed by maximum-parsimony, neighbor-joining, and maximum-likelihood methods. The results of these various methods are generally congruent and place Callimico within the Callitrichidae between the marmosets (Callithrix and Cebuella) and the tamarins (Saguinus and Leontopithecus). Combined analyses of all suitable nuclear and mitochondrial gene sequences confirm the position of Callimico between the marmosets and the tamarins. As available molecular evidence indicates that Callimico is more closely related to the marmosets than to the tamarins, a reconsideration of the morphological evidence in light of the consensus tree from DNA sequence analyses is warranted. The marmosets and tamarins share four morphological characters (loss of the third molar, loss of the hypocone, reduced body size, reproductive twinning). Dwarfism may have evolved repeatedly among the Callitrichidae. It is well-known that the loss of a character can occur many times independently. The reproduction of marmosets and tamarins is extremely specialized and it is difficult to imagine that this complex and unique twinning system evolved separately in marmosets and tamarins. However, it is possible that a secondary reversal to single offspring took place in Callimico. Received: 20 March 1997 / Accepted: 17 December 1997     

Mutation rate in human microsatellites: influence of the structure and length of the tandem repeat.

In 10,844 parent/child allelic transfers at nine short-tandem-repeat (STR) loci, 23 isolated STR mismatches were observed. The parenthood in each of these cases was highly validated (probability >99.97%). The event was always repeat related, owing to either a single-step mutation (n=22) or a double-step mutation (n=1). The mutation rate was between 0 and 7 x 10(-3) per locus per gamete per generation. No mutations were observed in three of the nine loci. Mutation events in the male germ line were five to six times more frequent than in the female germ line. A positive exponential correlation between the geometric mean of the number of uninterrupted repeats and the mutation rate was observed. Our data demonstrate that mutation rates of different loci can differ by several orders of magnitude and that different alleles at one locus exhibit different mutation rates.     

不同浓度外源IAA处理对杉木茎部基因表达的影响

为了揭示吲哚-3-乙酸(Indole-3-acetic acid,IAA)参与杉木木材发育调控的遗传机制,文章分别以0、3mg.IAA/g.lanolin处理不同阶段的杉木截顶茎秆作为驱动方(Driver)和测试方(Tester),利用抑制消减杂交技术(Suppression substractive hybridization,SSH),对其中差异表达的目的基因进行了分离和克隆。共获得332个Unigenes,其潜在的功能分别涉及到细胞组织和生物合成、发育进程调控、电子传递、逆境应答以及信号传导等方面;进一步地表达鉴定发现ClHIRA、ClPGY1和ClARF4等集中于茎部近轴区域表达的基因,能够积极地响应外源IAA刺激的维管形成层分裂和管胞分化活动;而ClSMP1、ClTCTP1和ClTRN2等集中于茎部远轴区域表达的基因,则在转录水平上对外源IAA的处理水平及近轴次生维管的发育变化表现出负相关的关系。这一结果表明特异性定位的发育基因对木材形成组织中内源IAA水平变化的差异性识别和响应很可能是生长素参与林木维管形成层次生发育调节的重要分子机制。     

发光酶基因lux AB标记硅酸盐细菌NBT菌株的研究

外源基因标记技术为研究土壤引入细菌的生态行为提供了有效的检测手段,通过选择不同的碳源和降低碳氮比筛选获得0．25％麦芽糖作为碳源的菌体制备培养基,对硅酸盐细菌BT菌株进行紫外诱变和抗生素抗性驯化获得—株抗利福平200μg·ml^-1的NBT-R200菌株,含发光酶基因luxAB的质粒pTR102：：luxAB在辅助质粒pRK2013的帮助下转入该菌株中,从而赋予NBT菌株以发光活性和利福平、卡那霉素、四环素三种抗生素抗性．以对数生长期的菌体制备受体细胞,发现对数生长前期的细胞转移频率最高,可达6．70×10^-5,杂交比例以1：1：1适宜．标记菌株RL85的释钾能力没有丧失且有提高,发光特性稳定,连续转接20次后仍具有发光活性和3种抗生素抗性,适用于根际微生态学研究。     

Exploitation of wild Cicer species for yield improvement in chickpea

 Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) ranks third in the world, and first in the Mediterranean basin, for production among pulses. Despite its importance as a crop and considerable research effort, traditional breeding methods have so far been unable to produce cultivars with a large impact on chickpea production. Interspecific hybridization is known to improve yield in many crops. Therefore, an attempt was made to increase the seed yield in chickpea through the introgression of genes from wild relatives at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Syria, from 1987 to 1995. Four crosses, ILC 482 (C. arietinum)×ILWC 179 (C. echinospermum) and ILC 482×ILWC 124 (C. reticulatum) and their reciprocals, were made. Pedigree selection was used to advance the material. Heterosis was recorded visually in F₁s, and single plant measurements for seed yield were recorded in F₂ populations. Promising and uniform progenies were bulked in the F₅ generation. Out of 96 F₆ lines, 22 were selected on the basis of seed yield and other agronomic characters, and evaluated in a replicated trial for seed yield and 14 agronomical, morphological and quality characters. A high level of heterosis was observed in F₁s. Several F₂ plants produced two to three times more seed yield than the best plant from the cultigen. Nine F₇ lines out-yielded the cultigen parent by up to 39%. Over 2 years, 12 lines had a higher yield than the cultigen parent. These lines were not only high yielding but also free of any known undesirable traits from the wild species, such as spreading growth habit, pod dehiscence, and non-uniform maturity. Quality traits, such as seed shape, type, colour, weight, and testa texture, protein content, cooking time and an organoleptic test of a Middle East dish, Homos Bi-Tehineh, were also similar to the cultigen parent. Both C. echinospermum and C. reticulatum contributed towards the increased yield. Received: 11 July 1996 / Accepted: 15 November 1996