Tibial Nerve Transection - A Standardized Model for Denervation-induced Skeletal Muscle Atrophy in Mice

The tibial nerve transection model is a well-tolerated, validated, and reproducible model of denervation-induced skeletal muscle atrophy in rodents. Although originally developed and used extensively in the rat due to its larger size, the tibial nerve in mice is big enough that it can be easily manipulated with either crush or transection, leaving the peroneal and sural nerve branches of the sciatic nerve intact and thereby preserving their target muscles. Thus, this model offers the advantages of inducing less morbidity and impediment of ambulation than the sciatic nerve transection model and also allows investigators to study the physiologic, cellular and molecular biologic mechanisms regulating the process of muscle atrophy in genetically engineered mice. The tibial nerve supplies the gastrocnemius, soleus and plantaris muscles, so its transection permits the study of denervated skeletal muscle composed of fast twitch type II fibers and/or slow twitch type I fibers. Here we demonstrate the tibial nerve transection model in the C57Black6 mouse. We assess the atrophy of the gastrocnemius muscle, as a representative muscle, at 1, 2, and 4 weeks post-denervation by measuring muscle weights and fiber type specific cross-sectional area on paraffin-embedded histologic sections immunostained for fast twitch myosin.     

Prehospital Thrombolysis: A Manual from Berlin

In acute ischemic stroke, time from symptom onset to intervention is a decisive prognostic factor. In order to reduce this time, prehospital thrombolysis at the emergency site would be preferable. However, apart from neurological expertise and laboratory investigations a computed tomography (CT) scan is necessary to exclude hemorrhagic stroke prior to thrombolysis. Therefore, a specialized ambulance equipped with a CT scanner and point-of-care laboratory was designed and constructed. Further, a new stroke identifying interview algorithm was developed and implemented in the Berlin emergency medical services. Since February 2011 the identification of suspected stroke in the dispatch center of the Berlin Fire Brigade prompts the deployment of this ambulance, a stroke emergency mobile (STEMO). On arrival, a neurologist, experienced in stroke care and with additional training in emergency medicine, takes a neurological examination. If stroke is suspected a CT scan excludes intracranial hemorrhage. The CT-scans are telemetrically transmitted to the neuroradiologist on-call. If coagulation status of the patient is normal and patient''s medical history reveals no contraindication, prehospital thrombolysis is applied according to current guidelines (intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator, iv rtPA, alteplase, Actilyse).Thereafter patients are transported to the nearest hospital with a certified stroke unit for further treatment and assessment of strokeaetiology. After a pilot-phase, weeks were randomized into blocks either with or without STEMO care. Primary end-point of this study is time from alarm to the initiation of thrombolysis. We hypothesized that alarm-to-treatment time can be reduced by at least 20 min compared to regular care.     

葛根素对帕金森病细胞模型的保护作用研究

目的:研究葛根素对帕金森病细胞模型的保护作用及其具体的作用机理.方法:用0.16mM的MPP+处理PC12细胞48h建立帕金森病细胞模型.实验分为对照组、损伤组和保护组,损伤组用MPP+(0.16mM)处理PC12细胞;保护组用葛根素提前预处理PC12细胞1h,后加MPP+.检测PC12细胞存活率、Caspase-3活性及ERβ的转录活性.结果:葛根素能够抑制caspase-3的激活,且其依赖于ERβ的表达,雌激素受体拮抗剂ICI182,780可阻断上述效应;其次葛根素可提高ERβ的转录活性.结论:葛根素对MPP+诱导损伤的PC12细胞具有抗细胞凋亡的保护作用,且具体的作用机理可能依赖于ERβ介导的经典的基因组作用模式.     

人GPR81-Gi1α融合蛋白在杆状病毒系统中的表达及优化

旨在建立获得融合蛋白GPR81-Gi1α的方法和最优条件。采用RT-PCR从人胚胎肾及大脑组织总RNA中分别扩增孤儿G蛋白偶联受体GPR81和Gi1α的完整表达序列(分别为1 041bp和1 065bp),并构建各自的重组质粒pcDNA3.1(+)-GPR81及pcDNA3.1(+)-Gi1α,再以重组质粒为模板,运用重叠延伸PCR法扩增得到融合基因GPR81-Gi1α,测序无误后将融合基因与pFASTBac1重组得重组质粒pFASTBac1-GPR81-Gi1α,而后转化DH10Bac,使该融合基因重组质粒发生特异性的转座和病毒重组,获得杆状病毒表达穿梭质粒pBacmid-GPR81- Ci1α,再将该重组杆粒转染昆虫sf9细胞,获得含杆状病毒的细胞分泌上清,以上清在不同条件下(包括不同感染时间、滴度等)感染sf9细胞以优化融合蛋白在昆虫sf9细胞的表达条件。结果表明,感染72h且感染强度moi为5时是融合蛋白在sf9细胞中高效表达的理想条件。该表达体系的建立及蛋白表达条件的优化,保证了足量GPR81- Gi1α融合蛋白的制备。     

Rapid and accurate structure-based therapeutic peptide design using GPU accelerated thermodynamic integration

Peptide-based therapeutics are an alternative to small molecule drugs as they offer superior specificity, lower toxicity, and easy synthesis. Here we present an approach that leverages the dramatic performance increase afforded by the recent arrival of GPU accelerated thermodynamic integration (TI). GPU TI facilitates very fast, highly accurate binding affinity optimization of peptides against therapeutic targets. We benchmarked TI predictions using published peptide binding optimization studies. Prediction of mutations involving charged side-chains was found to be less accurate than for non-charged, and use of a more complex 3-step TI protocol was found to boost accuracy in these cases. Using the 3-step protocol for non-charged side-chains either had no effect or was detrimental. We use the benchmarked pipeline to optimize a peptide binding to our recently discovered cancer target: EME1. TI calculations predict beneficial mutations using both canonical and non-canonical amino acids. We validate these predictions using fluorescence polarization and confirm that binding affinity is increased. We further demonstrate that this increase translates to a significant reduction in pancreatic cancer cell viability.     

基于生物膜干涉技术检测PDL1抗体与PDL1抗原的亲和力

生物膜干涉（biolayer interferometry,BLI）技术可对抗体与抗原的相互作用进行亲和力、动力学的全面分析。在抗体克隆筛选、动力学常数测定中对链霉亲和素（streptavidin,SA）生物传感器的需求量较大,但目前鲜有关于SA传感器重复利用的报道。基于BLI技术、再生SA生物传感器建立一种使用再生后的传感器检测PDL1抗体与PDL1抗原亲和力的方法。通过将生物素化的PDL1抗原偶联至SA生物传感器上,再与单链抗体、双价单链抗体、完整抗体和双特异性抗体这4类PDL1抗体结合,计算抗原抗体的亲和力常数,利用甘氨酸（10 mmol·L^-1,pH 1.7）再生SA传感器,再次进行分子间相互作用力分析。结果显示,重复性相对标准偏差（relative standard deviation,RSD）均值为6.87%,批间重复性RSD为0.82%,稳定性RSD均值为6.13%,说明运用甘氨酸再生后的SA生物传感器测分子间的亲和力数据可靠、重现性好、稳定性高,再生后的传感器可继续用于本样品的实时、无标记的抗原抗体相互作用力分析。BLI技术可节省检测成本,为SA传感器的重复利用提供理论依据。     

Effects of some drugs on the activity of glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase from rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) erythrocytes in vitro

Inhibitory effects of some drugs on glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase from the erythrocytes of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum, 1792) were investigated. The enzyme was purified 2488-fold in a yield of 76.8% using ammonium sulfate precipitation and 2′,5′-ADP Sepharose 4B affinity gel at 4°C. The drugs pental sodium, MgSO₄, vancomycin, metamizol, marcaine, and prilocaine all exhibited inhibitory effects on the enzyme. While MgSO₄ (K_i = 12.119 mM), vancomycin (K_i = 1.466 mM) and metamizol (K_i = 0.392 mM) showed competitive inhibition, pental sodium (K_i = 0.748 mM) and marcaine (K_i = 0.0446 mM) displayed noncompetitive inhibition.     

Enzymic synthesis,chemical characterisation and Sda activity of GalNAcß1-4[NeuAcα2-3]Galß1-4GlcNAc and GalNAcß1-4[NeuAcα2-3]Galß1-4Glc

The tetrasaccharides GalNAcß1-4[NeuAc2-3]Galß1-4Glc and GalNAcß1-4[NeuAc2-3]Galß1-4GlcNAc were synthesised by enzymic transfer of GalNAc from UDP-GalNAc to 3-sialyllactose (NeuAc2-3Galß1-4Glc) and 3-sialyl-N-acetyllactosamine (NeuAc2-3Galß1-4GlcNAc). The structures of the products were established by methylation and¹H-500 MHz NMR spectroscopy. In Sd^a serological tests the product formed with 3-sialyl-N-acetyllactosamine was highly active whereas that formed with 3-sialyllactose had only weak activity.     

High-throughput Flow Cytometry Cell-based Assay to Detect Antibodies to N-Methyl-D-aspartate Receptor or Dopamine-2 Receptor in Human Serum

Over the recent years, antibodies against surface and conformational proteins involved in neurotransmission have been detected in autoimmune CNS diseases in children and adults. These antibodies have been used to guide diagnosis and treatment. Cell-based assays have improved the detection of antibodies in patient serum. They are based on the surface expression of brain antigens on eukaryotic cells, which are then incubated with diluted patient sera followed by fluorochrome-conjugated secondary antibodies. After washing, secondary antibody binding is then analyzed by flow cytometry. Our group has developed a high-throughput flow cytometry live cell-based assay to reliably detect antibodies against specific neurotransmitter receptors. This flow cytometry method is straight forward, quantitative, efficient, and the use of a high-throughput sampler system allows for large patient cohorts to be easily assayed in a short space of time. Additionally, this cell-based assay can be easily adapted to detect antibodies to many different antigenic targets, both from the central nervous system and periphery. Discovering additional novel antibody biomarkers will enable prompt and accurate diagnosis and improve treatment of immune-mediated disorders.     

表皮生长因子对精原干细胞的作用研究

应用不连续Percoll梯度液和选择性贴壁法分离纯化精原干细胞:c-kit细胞免疫组化鉴定细胞类型;MTT法研究EGF对精原干细胞增殖的效应;加入MAPK-ERK信号通路特异性抑制剂PD98059,探讨EGF对精原干细胞增殖作用的可能机制.证明:1)c-kit细胞免疫组化结果显示分离得到细胞为精原千细胞;2)MTT结果显示各实验组比对照组细胞数量均有显著增多(p＜0.01),且20 ng/mL剂量组的增殖作用最明显;3)与对照组相比,加入PD98095组的活细胞数有显著下降(p＜0.01).结论:EGF能够促进精原干细胞的增殖,并且可以通过MAPK-ERK信号通路起作用.