Synaptic plasma membrane-bound acetylcholinesterase activity is not affected by docosahexaenoic acid-induced decrease in membrane order

We investigated the effect of administration of docosahexaenoic acid (C22:6, n-3; 300 mg/kg.day, for 12 weeks) on the degree of membrane order and membrane-bound acetylcholinesterase activity of the cerebral cortex synaptic plasma membrane in male Wistar rats. Docosahexaenoic acid levels in the synaptic plasma membrane increased significantly by 16% over levels in control rats concomitant with an increase in the molar ratio of docosahexaenoic acid to arachidonic acid. Synaptic plasma membrane order, assessed by 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene, which measures order of the bulk internal hydrophobic lipid core, decreased significantly in the docosahexaenoic acid-fed rats. Lateral mobility of both global and annular lipids measured by pyrene also increased. Acetylcholinesterase activity of the synaptic plasma membrane was unaffected, and synaptic plasma membrane phospholipid contents increased in the docosahexaenoic acid-fed rats, with a concomitant decrease in the cholesterol/phospholipid molar ratio. Lipid peroxide and reactive oxygen species, indicators of tissue oxidative stress, decreased in both the cerebral cortex synaptosome and homogenate of the docosahexaenoic acid-fed rats. Arrhenius plot showed a break point in acetylcholinesterase activity at 22 degrees C and 24 degrees C in plasma membranes from docosahexaenoic acid-fed and control rats, respectively. The present experiment indicates that chronic administration of docosahexaenoic acid does not affect synaptic acetylcholinesterase activity and evoke oxidative stress, although it increases the disorder of the global and annular lipids of rat synaptic plasma membranes.     

DisCons: a novel tool to quantify and classify evolutionary conservation of intrinsic protein disorder

Background

Analyzing the amino acid sequence of an intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) in an evolutionary context can yield novel insights on the functional role of disordered regions and sequence element(s). However, in the case of many IDPs, the lack of evolutionary conservation of the primary sequence can hamper the study of functionality, because the conservation of their disorder profile and ensuing function(s) may not appear in a traditional analysis of the evolutionary history of the protein.

Results

Here we present DisCons (Disorder Conservation), a novel pipelined tool that combines the quantification of sequence- and disorder conservation to classify disordered residue positions. According to this scheme, the most interesting categories (for functional purposes) are constrained disordered residues and flexible disordered residues. The former residues show conservation of both the sequence and the property of disorder and are associated mainly with specific binding functionalities (e.g., short, linear motifs, SLiMs), whereas the latter class correspond to segments where disorder as a feature is important for function as opposed to the identity of the underlying sequence (e.g., entropic chains and linkers). DisCons therefore helps with elucidating the function(s) arising from the disordered state by analyzing individual proteins as well as large-scale proteomics datasets.

Conclusions

DisCons is an openly accessible sequence analysis tool that identifies and highlights structurally disordered segments of proteins where the conformational flexibility is conserved across homologs, and therefore potentially functional. The tool is freely available both as a web application and as stand-alone source code hosted at http://pedb.vib.be/discons.     

TFG clusters COPII‐coated transport carriers and promotes early secretory pathway organization

In mammalian cells, cargo‐laden secretory vesicles leave the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) en route to ER‐Golgi intermediate compartments (ERGIC) in a manner dependent on the COPII coat complex. We report here that COPII‐coated transport carriers traverse a submicron, TFG (Trk‐fused gene)‐enriched zone at the ER/ERGIC interface. The architecture of TFG complexes as determined by three‐dimensional electron microscopy reveals the formation of flexible, octameric cup‐like structures, which are able to self‐associate to generate larger polymers in vitro. In cells, loss of TFG function dramatically slows protein export from the ER and results in the accumulation of COPII‐coated carriers throughout the cytoplasm. Additionally, the tight association between ER and ERGIC membranes is lost in the absence of TFG. We propose that TFG functions at the ER/ERGIC interface to locally concentrate COPII‐coated transport carriers and link exit sites on the ER to ERGIC membranes. Our findings provide a new mechanism by which COPII‐coated carriers are retained near their site of formation to facilitate rapid fusion with neighboring ERGIC membranes upon uncoating, thereby promoting interorganellar cargo transport.     

颞下颌关节紊乱患者关节液中MMP-3 和MMP-9表达的临床意义

目的:研究颞下颌关节紊乱(TMD)患者关节液中基质金属蛋白酶-3(MMP-3)和基质金属蛋白酶-9(MMP-9)水平变化及临床意义,为临床诊疗提供依据。方法:选取2013年4月到2016年4月我院收治的TMD患者60例,根据患者病变程度分为炎性疾病组(n=21例)、结构紊乱组(n=18例)、骨关节病组(n=21例),另选取同期健康志愿者30例为对照组采集研究者的关节液标本并应用双抗体夹心酶联免疫法检测关节液标本中MMP-3和MMP-9的水平。结果:骨关节病组MMP-3和MMP-9水平显著高于结构紊乱组、炎性疾病组和对照组,结构紊乱组、炎性疾病组显著高于对照组,比较差异具有统计学意义(P0.05),结构紊乱组与炎性疾病组比较差异无统计学意义(P0.05)。结论:关节液中MMP-3和MMP-9水平随着TMD病变程度增加而明显升高,能在一定程度上反应颞下颌关节病严重程度。     

Deciphering Spatial Protein–Protein Interactions in Brain Using Proximity Labeling

Cellular biomolecular complexes including protein–protein, protein–RNA, and protein–DNA interactions regulate and execute most biological functions. In particular in brain, protein–protein interactions (PPIs) mediate or regulate virtually all nerve cell functions, such as neurotransmission, cell–cell communication, neurogenesis, synaptogenesis, and synaptic plasticity. Perturbations of PPIs in specific subsets of neurons and glia are thought to underly a majority of neurobiological disorders. Therefore, understanding biological functions at a cellular level requires a reasonably complete catalog of all physical interactions between proteins. An enzyme-catalyzed method to biotinylate proximal interacting proteins within 10 to 300 nm of each other is being increasingly used to characterize the spatiotemporal features of complex PPIs in brain. Thus, proximity labeling has emerged recently as a powerful tool to identify proteomes in distinct cell types in brain as well as proteomes and PPIs in structures difficult to isolate, such as the synaptic cleft, axonal projections, or astrocyte–neuron junctions. In this review, we summarize recent advances in proximity labeling methods and their application to neurobiology.     

重症创伤患者ICU后综合征心理障碍影响因素分析

摘要 目的：探究重症创伤患者ICU后综合征（PICS）心理障碍影响因素。方法：本次研究纳入60例重症创伤患者,按照是否存在PICS分为对照组（20例）和PICS组（40例）。进行不同治疗情况PICS心理障碍影响因素单因素分析。PICS心理障碍患者急性生理与慢性健康状况评分系统（APACHEII）和医院焦虑和抑郁量表（HADS）评分、Ogawa改良创伤评分系统、匹兹堡睡眠质量指数量表（PSQI）评分进行单因素分析,并进行PICS心理障碍的相关性分析,PICS心理障碍影响因素Logistic回归分析。结果：（1）PICS组年龄<30比例较对照组升高,30-50患者比例较对照组降低（P<0.05）。PICS组文化程度文盲和小学患者比例较对照组升高,初中和高中及以上患者比例较对照组降低（P<0.05）。（2）PICS组手术、手术时间1~3 h和＞3 h、ICU时间10~14 d、镇静药物和有创机械通气患者比例较对照组升高（P<0.05）。（3）PICS组APACHEII评分<20和20~25患者比例较对照组降低,APACHEII评分25~30和＞30患者比例较对照组升高（P<0.05）;PICS组HADS评分<5和5~15患者比例较对照组降低,HADS评分15~25和≥25患者比例较对照组升高（P<0.05）;PICS组得分低于9分的轻度损伤者和得分10~16分的中度损伤的患者比例较对照组降低,得分≥17分为重度损伤的患者比例较对照组升高（P<0.05）;PICS组得分≤7分的睡眠质量较好的患者比例较对照组降低（P<0.05）,得分>7分的睡眠障碍的患者比例较对照组升高（P<0.05）。（4）PICS组年龄、手术时间、ICU时间、APACHEII评分、HADS评分、PSQI得分以及创伤指数评分较对照组升高（P<0.05）;（5）PICS心理障碍与年龄、文化程度、手术时间、ICU时间、镇静药物、无创机械通气、有创机械通气、APACHEII评分、HADS评分、创伤指数评分以及PSQI评分相关（P<0.05）。结论：PICS组年龄、手术时间、ICU时间、APACHEII评分和HADS评分较对照组升高;PICS心理障碍与年龄、文化程度、手术时间、ICU时间、镇静药物、无创机械通气、有创机械通气、APACHEII评分、HADS评分、创伤指数评分以及PSQI评分相关。     

Focal palatine erosion in captive and free-living cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) and other felid species

We examined 1,092 skulls of captive and free-living individuals, representing 33 felid species, to determine the prevalence of focal palatine erosion (FPE). FPE was detected in 3.2% of cats evaluated, including cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) and 14 other felid species. The prevalence of FPE between cheetah (9.4%; n = 64) and non-cheetah species (2.8%; n = 1,028) (χ(2) test; P = 0.004) and between captive (5.7%; n = 246) and free-living (2.4%; n = 824) individuals (χ(2) test; P = 0.010) were significantly different, with prevalence between captive (19%; n = 21) and free-living (2.9%; n = 34) cheetahs approaching significance (Fisher's exact test; P = 0.064). FPE was diagnosed with equal prevalence in skulls from individuals in which the lower molars did not meet the palatine bone (60.6%) and individuals in which it did (39.4%; n = 33) (χ(2) test; P = 0.139). In cheetahs with FPE, one was a captive animal in Germany, one a free-living cheetah from Mali, one captive cheetah from Kenya, and three captive cheetahs of unknown origin. Additionally, we evaluated the medical records of 49 captive cheetahs in Namibia. Of these cheetahs, 48 (98.0%) had clinical signs consistent with FPE, although only 16 of these 48 (39.6%) had perforation of the palatine bone. Based on physical examinations, FPE was diagnosed in two caracals (Caracal caracal) and one fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) from a North American Zoo. Results from this study confirm FPE in cheetahs outside of Namibia, in a minimum of 15 felid species, and a higher FPE prevalence in captive individuals than free-living ones. Clinical implications of these findings and recommendations for future studies are provided.     

Childhood Psychological,Physical, and Sexual Maltreatment in Outpatients with Binge Eating Disorder: Frequency and Associations with Gender,Obesity, and Eating‐Related Psychopathology

Objective: To examine rates of reported childhood maltreatment in binge eating disorder (BED), and to explore associations with obesity, gender, eating disorder features, and associated functioning. Research Methods and Procedures: Subjects were 145 consecutive outpatients with BED as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4^th edition. Subjects were interviewed and they completed questionnaires to assess eating disorder features and functioning. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire was given to assess childhood maltreatment in five domains (emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect). Results: A total of 83% of BED patients reported some form of childhood maltreatment. A total of 59% of BED patients reported emotional abuse, 36% reported physical abuse, 30% reported sexual abuse, 69% reported emotional neglect, and 49% reported physical neglect. There were no differences in the distribution of any form of childhood maltreatment by gender or by obesity status. The different forms of maltreatment were not associated with variability in current body mass index, binge eating, or in the attitudinal features of eating disorders. Only one of the five forms of maltreatment (physical neglect) was associated with dietary restraint in women. Emotional abuse was significantly associated with greater body dissatisfaction, higher depression, and lower self‐esteem in men and women and sexual abuse was associated with greater body dissatisfaction in men. The different forms of maltreatment were unrelated to the age at onset of overweight, dieting, or binge eating. Discussion: BED outpatients reported a wide range of childhood experiences of maltreatment that do not differ by gender or obesity status. Different forms of maltreatment were not associated with the onset of overweight, dieting, or binge eating, or with variability in current body mass index or eating disorder features (except for one association between physical neglect and dietary restraint). Reports of emotional abuse were associated with greater body dissatisfaction and depression and lower self‐esteem in men and women and sexual abuse with greater body dissatisfaction in men.     

Alterations of the endocannabinoid system and its therapeutic potential in autism spectrum disorder

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of developmental disabilities, the aetiology of which remains elusive. The endocannabinoid (eCB) system modulates neurotransmission and neuronal plasticity. Evidence points to the involvement of this neuromodulatory system in the pathophysiology of ASD. We investigated whether there is a disruption to the eCB system in ASD and whether pharmacological modulation of the eCB system might offer therapeutic potential. We examined three major components of the eCB system—endogenous cannabinoids, their receptors and associated enzymes—in ASD children as well as in the valproic acid (VPA) induced animal model in autism. Furthermore, we specifically increased 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) levels by administering JZL184, a selective inhibitor of monoacylglycerol lipase which is the hydrolytic enzyme for 2-AG, to examine ASD-like behaviours in VPA-induced rats. Results showed that autistic children and VPA-induced rats exhibited reduced eCB content, increased degradation of enzymes and upregulation of CBRs. We found that repetitive and stereotypical behaviours, hyperactivity, sociability, social preference and cognitive functioning improved after acute and chronic JZL184 treatment. The major efficacy of JZL184 was observed after administration of a dosage regimen of 3 mg kg⁻¹, which affected both the eCB system and ASD-like behaviours. In conclusion, a reduced eCB signalling was observed in autistic children and in the ASD animal model, and boosting 2-AG could ameliorate ASD-like phenotypes in animals. Collectively, the results suggested a novel approach to ASD treatment.