Dynamic discrete model of flashing light effect in photosynthesis of microalgae

For a photobioreactor for mass-culturing microalgae, it is known that flashing light effect enhances the efficiency of photosynthesis. A dynamic model for photosynthesis was developed to elucidate this effect. A particular feature of the model is that discrete RuBP particles circulate in the Calvin cycle and their speeds in the cycle are determined by the amount of ATP generated in the photon reception process. This can realise the light saturation under continuous light and the flashing light effect under fluctuating illumination. Laboratory experiments were conducted to obtain model parameters by curve-fitting for Chaetoceros calcitrans. The present model demonstrates the light flashing effect moderately well and elucidates its mechanism reasonably.     

真菌发育过程中的蓝光诱导

本文对多种真菌在发育过程中受蓝光诱导的现象进行了综述。蓝光可以诱导多种真菌的形态发生和发育,包括孢子的产生和菌丝的延伸等。此外,蓝光还可引起真菌的生理和生化改变,如细胞膜对离子的通透性的变化、类胡萝卜素的合成等。真菌也存在一个蓝光信号系统,通过蓝光受体接受蓝光信号,导致了真菌的一系列形态发生和生理生化的变化。     

莫沙必利对糖尿病胃轻瘫大鼠胃窦Cajal间质细胞的影响

目的:研究莫沙必利对糖尿病胃轻瘫大鼠胃窦Cajal间质细胞(ICC)的影响。方法:将48只SD雄性大鼠随机分为正常组、模型组、莫沙必利组,各组分别16只。模型组、莫沙必利组大鼠给予一次性腹腔注射链脲佐菌素后建立糖尿病胃轻瘫模型,建模第10天起,莫沙必利组大鼠给予莫沙必利注灌胃治疗。建模30周后,检测各组大鼠的血糖水平、胃残留率,通过采用电生理学方法检测各组大鼠胃动力,并采用免疫组化染色方法检测各组胃窦ICC的相对数量。结果:模型组大鼠胃残留率明显高于正常组大鼠(P0.05),而给予莫沙必利后胃残留率显著降低(P0.05);模型组大鼠胃电图波幅和频率均明显低于正常组大鼠(P0.05),而给予莫沙必利后胃电图波幅和频率明显增加(P0.05);模型组大鼠胃窦ICC明显低于正常组大鼠(P0.05),而给予莫沙必利后胃窦ICC有所增加(P0.05)。结论:莫沙必利可显著改善糖尿病胃轻瘫大鼠的胃动力,可能与其增加胃窦Cajal间质细胞有关。     

Cloning and characterization of novel tumor-targeting immunocytokines based on murine IL7

We generated and characterized novel antibody-cytokine fusion proteins (“immunocytokines”) based on murine interleukin-7 (IL7), an immunomodulatory protein which has previously shown anti-cancer activity in preclinical models and whose human counterpart is currently being investigated in clinical trials. The sequential fusion of the clinical-stage antibody fragment scFv(F8), specific to a tumor-associated splice isoform of fibronectin, yielded an immunocytokine (termed “F8-mIL7”) of insufficient pharmaceutical quality and in vivo tumor targeting performance, with a striking dose dependence on tumor targeting selectivity. By contrast, a novel immunocytokine design (termed “F8-mIL7-F8”), in which two scFv moieties were fused at the N- and C-terminus of murine IL7, yielded a protein of excellent pharmaceutical quality and with improved tumor-targeting performance [tumor: blood ratio = 16:1, 24 h after injection]. Both F8-mIL7 and F8-mIL7-F8 could induce tumor growth retardation in immunocompetent mice, but were not able to eradicate F9 tumors. The combination of F8-mIL7-F8 with paclitaxel led to improved therapeutic results, which were significantly better compared to those obtained with saline treatment. The study indicates how the engineering of novel immunocytokine formats may help generate fusion proteins of acceptable pharmaceutical quality, for those immunomodulatory proteins which do not lend themselves to a direct fusion with antibody fragments.     

The Role of the N-Terminus of the Myosin Essential Light Chain in Cardiac Muscle Contraction

To study the regulation of cardiac muscle contraction by the myosin essential light chain (ELC) and the physiological significance of its N-terminal extension, we generated transgenic (Tg) mice by partially replacing the endogenous mouse ventricular ELC with either the human ventricular ELC wild type (Tg-WT) or its 43-amino-acid N-terminal truncation mutant (Tg-Δ43) in the murine hearts. The mutant protein is similar in sequence to the short ELC variant present in skeletal muscle, and the ELC protein distribution in Tg-Δ43 ventricles resembles that of fast skeletal muscle. Cardiac muscle preparations from Tg-Δ43 mice demonstrate reduced force per cross-sectional area of muscle, which is likely caused by a reduced number of force-generating myosin cross-bridges and/or by decreased force per cross-bridge. As the mice grow older, the contractile force per cross-sectional area further decreases in Tg-Δ43 mice and the mutant hearts develop a phenotype of nonpathologic hypertrophy while still maintaining normal cardiac performance. The myocardium of older Tg-Δ43 mice also exhibits reduced myosin content. Our results suggest that the role of the N-terminal ELC extension is to maintain the integrity of myosin and to modulate force generation by decreasing myosin neck region compliance and promoting strong cross-bridge formation and/or by enhancing myosin attachment to actin.     

Localization of a base-paired interaction between small nuclear RNAs U4 and U6 in intact U4/U6 ribonucleoprotein particles by psoralen cross-linking

The small nuclear RNAs U4 and U6 display extensive sequence complementarity and co-exist in a single ribonucleoprotein particle. We have investigated intermolecular base-pairing between both RNAs by psoralen cross-linking, with emphasis on the native U4/U6 ribonucleoprotein complex. A mixture of small nuclear ribonucleoproteins U1 to U6 from HeLa cells, purified under non-denaturing conditions by immune affinity chromatography with antibodies specific for the trimethylguanosine cap of the small nuclear RNAs was treated with aminomethyltrioxsalen. A psoralen cross-linked U4/U6 RNA complex could be detected in denaturing polyacrylamide gels. Following digestion of the cross-linked U4/U6 RNA complex with ribonuclease T1, two-dimensional diagonal electrophoresis in denaturing polyacrylamide gels was used to isolate cross-linked fragments. These fragments were analysed by chemical sequencing methods and their positions identified within RNAs U4 and U6. Two overlapping fragments of U4 RNA, spanning positions 52 to 65, were cross-linked to one fragment of U6 RNA (positions 51 to 59). These fragments show complementarity over a contiguous stretch of eight nucleotides. From these results, we conclude that in the native U4/U6 ribonucleoprotein particle, both RNAs are base-paired via these complementary regions. The small nuclear RNAs U4 and U6 became cross-linked in the deproteinized U4/U6 RNA complex also, provided that small nuclear ribonucleoproteins were phenolized at 0 degree C. When the phenolization was performed at 65 degrees C, no cross-linking could be detected upon reincubation of the dissociated RNAs at lower temperature. These results indicate that proteins are not required to stabilize the mutual interactions between both RNAs, once they exist. They further suggest, however, that proteins may well be needed for exposing the complementary RNA regions for proper intermolecular base-pairing in the course of the assembly of the U4/U6 RNP complex from isolated RNAs. Our results are discussed also in terms of the different secondary structures that the small nuclear RNAs U4 and U6 may adopt in the U4/U6 ribonucleoprotein particle as opposed to the isolated RNAs.     

Advanced photobioreactor LED illumination system: Scale‐down approach to study microalgal growth kinetics

A newly designed and constructed LED illumination device for commercial cylindrical bioreactors is presented for application in microalgal cultivations and investigation of growth kinetics. An ideally illuminated volume is achieved by focusing the light toward the center of the reactor and thereby compensating the mutual shading of the cells. The relevant biomass concentration for homogeneous illumination depending on reactor radius was determined by light distribution measurements for Chlamydomonas to 0.2 g/L (equal 0.435 optical density at 750 nm). It is shown that cultivation experiments with the newly designed illumination device operated in batch mode can be successfully applied for determination of growth rates and photo conversion efficiencies. The exact knowledge of physiological reactions of specific strain(s) and the estimation of relevant parameters for scale‐up can be used for construction of economic pilot plant photobioreactors. The determination of light‐dependent kinetics of growth and product formation is the first necessary step to achieve this. A wide variety of different parameters can be examined like the effect of different illumination conditions (light intensity, frequency of day/night cycles, flashing light, light color…) and thereby for each single application specific, relevant, and interesting parameters will be examined.