Promotion of β-amyloid production by C-reactive protein and its implications in the early pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease

C-reactive protein (CRP) and β-amyloid protein (Aβ) are involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the relationship between CRP and Aβ production is unclear. In vitro and in vivo experiments were performed to investigate the association of CRP with Aβ production. Using the rat adrenal pheochromocytoma cell line (PC12 cells) to mimic neurons, cytotoxicity was evaluated by cell viability and supernatant lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity. The levels of amyloid precursor protein (APP), beta-site APP cleaving enzyme (BACE-1), and presenilins (PS-1 and PS-2) were investigated using real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting analysis. Aβ1-42 was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The relevance of CRP and Aβ as well as potential mechanisms were studied using APP/PS1 transgenic (Tg) mice. Treatment with 0.5-4.0 μM CRP for 48 h decreased cell viability and increased LDH leakage in PC12 cells. Incubation with CRP at a sub-toxic concentration of 0.2 μM increased the mRNA levels of APP, BACE-1, PS-1, and PS-2, as well as Aβ1-42 production. CRP inhibitor reversed the CRP-induced upregulations of the mRNA levels of APP, BACE-1, PS-1, and PS-2, and the protein levels of APP, BACE-1, PS-1, and Aβ1-42, but did not reversed Aβ1-42 cytotoxicity. The cerebral levels of CRP and Aβ1-42 in APP/PS1 Tg mice were positively correlated, accompanied with the elevated mRNA expressions of serum amyloid P component (SAP), complement component 1q (C1q), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). These results suggest that CRP cytotoxicity is associated with Aβ formation and Aβ-related markers expressions; CRP and Aβ were relevant in early-stage AD; CRP may be an important trigger in AD pathogenesis.     

Optimization on preparation condition of epimedium polysaccharide liposome and evaluation of its adjuvant activity

The aim of this strategy was to investigate whether the adjuvant activity of epimedium polysaccharide (EPS) could be further enhanced after encapsulated with liposome. In preparation of EPS liposome (EPSL) test, an orthogonal L₉ (3⁴) test design was used to optimize the preparation condition of EPSL. In adjuvant activity test, 350 14-day-old chickens were randomly assigned to 7 groups and vaccinated with Newcastle disease (ND) vaccine. Simultaneously, the chickens in experimental groups were injected with EPSL at three doses, EPS and blank liposome, respectively. The activity of lymphocytes proliferation, titer of serum antibody and concentrations of cytokines were determined. Results showed that the optimal preparation condition of EPSL was that ratio of drug to lipid, ratio of soybean phospholipid to cholesterol, ultrasonic time, and water bath temperature were 1:30, 4:1, 10 min and 40 °C, respectively. EPSL could significantly enhance the immune response of ND vaccine and promote cytokines secretion, and its high dose possessed the best efficacy. These findings indicated that liposome encapsulation could significantly improve the adjuvant activity of EPS.     

Amyloid fibrillation in native and chemically-modified forms of carbonic anhydrase II: Role of surface hydrophobicity

Chemical modification or mutation of proteins may bring about significant changes in the net charge or surface hydrophobicity of a protein structure. Such events may be of major physiological significance and may provide important insights into the genetics of amyloid diseases. In the present study, fibrillation potential of native and chemically-modified forms of bovine carbonic anhydrase II (BCA II) were investigated. Initially, various denaturing conditions including low pH and high temperatures were tested to induce fibrillation. At a low pH of around 2.4, where the protein is totally dissociated, the apo form was found to take up a pre-molten globular (PMG) conformation with the capacity for fibril formation. Upon increasing the pH to around 3.6, a molten globular (MG) form became abundant, forming amorphous aggregates. Charge neutralization and enhancement of hydrophobicity by methylation, acetylation and propionylation of lysine residues appeared very effective in promoting fibrillation of both the apo and holo forms under native conditions, the rates and extents of which were directly proportional to surface hydrophobicity, and influenced by salt concentration and temperature. These modified structures underwent more pronounced fibrillation under native conditions, than the PMG intermediate form, observed under denaturing conditions. The nature of the fibrillation products obtained from intermediate and modified structures were characterized and compared and their possible cytotoxicity determined. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of surface net charge and hydrophobicity in controlling protein aggregation. A discussion on the physiological significance of the observations is also presented.     

制备精原干细胞滋养层细胞条件的优化

目的:优化精原干细胞培养滋养层细胞的制备条件。方法:首先根据文献资料报道和实践经验确定丝裂霉素C作用STO细胞的浓度范围和时间范围,利用双因素优选法缩短丝裂霉素C处理STO细胞的试验范围。然后采用MTT检测法确定丝裂霉素C处理STO细胞的最佳浓度和时间。结果:滋养层细胞处理后不经过冷冻保存的情况下,17.64μg/ml 2 h处理条件的STO细胞在培养14天内细胞数量基本保持稳定,其它处理条件的细胞数量均有所增加;经冷冻保存的情况下,14.72μg/ml 2 h处理条件的STO细胞在培养14天内细胞数量基本保持稳定,其它处理条件的细胞数目均有所降低。结论:滋养层细胞处理后不经过冷冻保存的情况下,17.64μg/ml 2 h的处理条件是丝裂霉素C处理STO细胞的最佳条件;经冷冻保存的情况下,14.72μg/ml 2 h的处理条件是丝裂霉素C处理STO细胞的最佳条件。     

An scFv intrabody against the nonamyloid component of alpha-synuclein reduces intracellular aggregation and toxicity

Prevention of abnormal misfolding and aggregation of α synuclein (syn) protein in vulnerable neurons should be viable therapeutic strategies for reducing pathogenesis in Parkinson's disease. The nonamyloid component (NAC) region of α-syn shows strong tendencies to form β-sheet structures, and deletion of this region has been shown to reduce aggregation and toxicity in vitro and in vivo. The binding of a molecular species to this region may mimic the effects of such deletions. Single-chain variable fragment (scFv) antibodies retain the binding specificity of antibodies and, when genetically manipulated to create high-diversity libraries, allow in vitro selection against peptides. Accordingly, we used a yeast surface display library of an entire naïve repertoire of human scFv antibodies to select for binding to a NAC peptide. Candidate scFv antibodies (after transfer to mammalian expression vectors) were screened for viability in a neuronal cell line by transient cotransfection with A53T mutant α-syn. This provided a ranking of the protective efficacies of the initial panel of intracellular antibodies (intrabodies). High steady-state expression levels and apparent conformational epitope binding appeared more important than in vitro affinity in these assays. None of the scFv antibodies selected matched the sequences of previously reported anti-α-syn scFv antibodies. A stable cell line expressing the most effective intrabody, NAC32, showed highly significant reductions in abnormal aggregation in two separate models. Recently, intrabodies have shown promising antiaggregation and neuroprotective effects against misfolded mutant huntingtin protein. The NAC32 study extends such work significantly by utilizing information about the pathogenic capacity of a specific α-syn region to offer a new generation of in vitro-derived antibody fragments, both for further engineering as direct therapeutics and as a tool for rational drug design for Parkinson's disease.     

癌细胞原代培养对化疗药物敏感性的探讨

目的通过对不同抗癌药物敏感性做比较,以期寻找各自的合理化疗用药方案,从而指导不同癌症病人的化疗。方法通过肿瘤细胞体外药敏试验（即四甲基偶氮唑盐着色法,MTT）,对161例肿瘤（胃癌28例,肠癌38例,膀胱癌8例,乳腺癌33例,其他肿瘤54例）新鲜瘤组织进行表阿霉素（EADM）、氨甲蝶呤（MTX）、丝裂霉素（MMC）、长春新碱（VCR）、5-氟脲嘧啶（5-FU）、羟基喜树碱（OPT）、顺铂（DDP）、卡铂（CBP）、环磷酰胺（CTX）、足叶乙甙（VP-16）、β-揽香烯（β-elemene）11种化疗药物敏感性检测,并对其结果进行比较。结果11种抗癌药对不同的肿瘤类型耐药率不同。结论各种类型肿瘤细胞对化疗药物的选择虽有一定共性,但同种肿瘤的不同个体对同种化疗药物的抑制率差异却存有显著性。肿瘤细胞体外药物敏感性测定对肿瘤病人个体的化疗具有一定价值。     

氟代柠檬酸对体外培养的神经胶质瘤细胞G422增殖的抑制效应

为研究氟代柠檬酸(Fluorocitrate)对体外培养的神经胶质瘤细胞生长的影响,采用MTT法研究不同的氟代柠檬酸浓度(0.0025mmol/L,0.005mmol/L,0.01 mmol/L,0.025mmol/L和0.1 mmol/L)和作用时间(36h,48h和60h)对神经胶质瘤细胞G422增殖的影响.结果发现:(1)氟代柠檬酸可抑制G422细胞的增殖,并且其抑制作用随氟代柠檬睃浓度的增加而增强;(2)高浓度(0.01 mmol/L,0.025 mmol/L和0.1 mmol/L)氟代柠檬酸对G422细胞的增殖抑制作用随作用时问的延长而增强:(3)低浓度(0.0025mmol/L和0.005mmol/L)氟代柠檬酸对G422细胞的增殖抑制作用不随作用时间的延长而改变.实验表明,氟代柠檬酸能够抑制神经胶质瘤细胞的增殖,其抑制能力随氟代柠檬酸浓度的增加和作用时间的延长而加强.     

WST-1-based cell cytotoxicity assay as a substitute for MTT-based assay for rapid detection of toxigenic Bacillus species using CHO cell line

Bacillus cereus continues to be one of the important foodborne pathogens due to its ability to produce various heat-labile and -stable toxins. Several methods have been developed to assess the pathogenicity of the B. cereus strains; however, most of these take more than 2–3 days to provide confirmatory results. In this study we standardized a one-step cytotoxicity assay using WST-1 (4-[3-(4-iodophenyl)-2-(4-nitrophenyl)-2H-5-tetrazolio]-1,3-benzene disulfonate) and compared with the traditional MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide)-based assay for rapid detection of cytotoxic Bacillus spp. using Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line. Crude toxin preparations from 50 isolates of Bacillus spp. were exposed to CHO cell line for 1 h or 24 h and the cytotoxicity was determined by using WST-1 and MTT-based methods. Most B. cereus strains and some strains of other Bacillus species from our collection or from food sources showed comparably high cytotoxicity using either of the methods (P = 0.81); however, WST-1 assay provided results in only 3 h while MTT assay in 44–52 h. A positive correlation (R² = 0.93) between WST-1 and MTT assays strongly suggests that the WST-1-based cytotoxicity assay could be used as an alternative method to MTT assay for rapid (3 h) confirmation of toxigenic Bacillus species in foods prior to their retail distribution or consumption.     

LipofectAMINE和Vigofect转染特点的比较研究

目的 :评估新型转染试剂Vigofect介导gfp - 2mar基因转染BHK细胞的转染效率及其对细胞的毒性作用 ,并与传统转染试剂LipofectAMINE进行比较。方法 :将适量的gfp - 2mar分别用等量的LipofectAMINE和Vigofect转染BHK细胞 ,于转染后 4 8h用MTT比色法检测活细胞数 ,以GFP为报告基因 ,在荧光显微镜下观察并用流式细胞仪计数荧光细胞 ,检测转染效率。结果 :Lipo fectAMINE转染组细胞存活率为 96 .5 1± 3.12 % ,显著大于Vigofect转染组 6 1.4 3± 16 .89% (P <0 .0 1) ;Vigofect转染效率为 5 9.2±19 .5 1% ,显著高于LipofectAMINE 10 .72± 8.17% (P <0 .0 2 )。结论 :与LipofectAMINE相比较 ,Vigofect对细胞毒性较大 ,但转染效率较高