Reduction of methylglyoxal in Escherichia coli K12 by an aldehyde reductase and alcohol dehydrogenase

Two enzymes, one NADPH-dependent and another NADH-dependent which catalyze the reduction of methylglyoxal to acetol have been isolated and substantially purified from crude extracts of Escherichia coli K₁₂ cells. Substrate specificity and formation of acetol as the reaction product by both the enzymes, reversibility of NADH-dependent enzyme with alcohols as substrates and inhibitor study with NADPH-dependent enzyme indicate that NADPH-dependent and NADH-dependent enzymes are identical with an aldehyde reductase (EC 1.1.1.2) and alcohol dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.1) respectively. The K_m for methylglyoxal have been determined to be 0.77 mM for NADPH-dependent and 3.8 mM for NADH-dependent enzyme. Stoichiometrically equimolar amount of acetol is formed from methylglyoxal by both NADPH- and NADH-dependent enzymes. In phosphate buffer, both the enzymes are active in the pH range of 5.8–6.6 with no sharp pH optimum. Molecular weight of both the enzymes were found to be 100,000 ± 3,000 by gel filtration on a Sephacryl S-200 column. Both NADPH- and NADH-dependent enzymes are sensitive to sulfhydryl group reagents.     

大肠杆菌亮氨酰－tRNA合成酶LeuRS67R的纯化及其动力学研究

本实验室已得到的亮氨酰－ｔＲＮＡ合成酶（ＬｅｕＲＳ）基因,与文献相比,６７位氨基酸残基由Ｈｉｓ变为Ａｒｇ,此酶被定名为ＬｅｕＲＳ６７Ｒ。我们从该基因与ｐＵＣ１９重组质粒的大肠杆菌ＴＧ１转化子ＴＧ１－９１中得到ＬｅｕＲＳ的高表达,粗抽液中ＬｅｕＲＳ的表达量在转化子中比在宿主菌ＴＧ１中高２０倍以上。用三步拉层析得到电泳一条带的酶,其比活为１７８９单位／毫克。测定其动力学常数,氨酰化活力对Ｌｅｕ、ＡＴＰ的Ｋｍ值分别为０．０２７ｍｍｏｌ／Ｌ、０．４７ｍｍｏｌ／Ｌ,Ｋｃａｔ值分别为３．５～５．１ｓ－１。ＡＴＰ－ＰＰｉ交换活力对Ｌｅｕ、ＡＴＰ的Ｋｍ值分别为０．０３ｍｍｏｌ／Ｌ、１．０ｍｍｏｌ／Ｌ,Ｌｃａｔ值分别为１４０～１５５ｓ－１。此结果与从野生型大肠杆菌Ｋ－１２中提纯的ＬｅｕＲＳ的动力学常数差别很小,６７位氨基酸残基在与活性中心无直接关系的域可能是大肠杆菌的种间差异。     

使用MUG培养基定量检测植物药中大肠杆菌时荧光猝灭现象的发生与克服方法

实验中观察到,用ＭＵＧ培养基对植物药中的大肠杆菌定量时多发生荧光猝灭现象,影响检测结果。本文对此现象产生的原因与克服方法进行了系统的考察,发现以一种简便的转接方法可排除植物药介质对菌检的干扰。该方法由两组检验系列构成,当怀疑正常稀释系列（第一系列）４０ｈ培养液的荧光结果可能因猝灭现象呈假阴性时,立即分别将该系列的１—３号管培养液以０．５ｍｌ的接种量转接入新鲜的ＭＵＧ培养基（第二系列）,重新培养２４ｈ,荧光猝灭现象即可克服。综合两系列的荧光、产气和吲哚三项生化特征得出检品中大肠杆菌含量。实际应用表明,此法能显著提高使用该培养基时菌检结果的可靠性。     

人白介素6受体功能区片段在E．coli中的表达

通过ＤＮＡ体外重组技术,以ｐＥＴ－３ｂ为表达载体,构建了重组表达质粒ｐＥＴ－６Ｒ（Ｂ）和ＰＥＴ－６Ｒ（Ｂ）４,分别编码２８ｋＤ的ｈＩＬ－６Ｒ配基结合区片段及其５３ｋＤ的二联体蛋白,并为酶切分析和ＤＮＡ序列分析所证实。ＳＤＳ－ＰＡＧＥ分析表明,含有重组表达质粒的菌株可分别表达出２８ｋＤ的蛋白ｒＩＬ６Ｒ－２８和５３ｋＤ的ｒＩＬ６Ｒ－５３。重组蛋白分别占菌体总蛋白的４５％和２９％左右。重组蛋白主要以包涵体形式存在,Ｗｅｓｔｅｒｎ印迹表明重组蛋白具有ＩＬ－６Ｒ的抗原性。     

昆虫杆状病毒晚期启动子在大肠杆菌中启动CAT基因表达

将油桐尺蠖（Ｂｕｚｕｒａｓｕｐｐｒｅｓｓａｒｉａ）核多角体病毒晚期基因──多角体蛋白基因启动子及５′端编码区,以两种不同方式置于缺乏启动子的氯霉素乙酰基转移酶（ＣＡＴ）基因上游,使其分别终止在不同翻译终止位点,其宿主菌具有明显不同的氯霉素抗性,最高达２００ｍｇ／Ｌ　ＬＢ培养基以上,表明昆虫病毒启动子能启动原核基因表达。对多角体蛋白基因启动子能在大肠杆菌中有效工作的原因进行了讨论。     

Stringent regulation of human growth hormone expression in cultured murine C2C12 myoblasts by theE. coli lac repressor

Summary Gene transfer techniques can be used to encode the production of a polypeptide product, such as human growth hormone (hGH), that is missing in an acquired or inherited disease state such as growth hormone deficiency. In one model system, engineered C2C12 myoblasts are injected intramuscularly into a mouse and subsequently secrete hGH into the circulation. In this regard, a gene-expression regulatory system that functions in myoblasts would be of interest. We demonstrate that theEscherichia coli lac operon system can be used to stringently regulate the expression of hGH in engineered C2C12 myoblasts in tissue culture. A DNA segment encoding hGH was linked to a DNA segment containing an SV40 enhancer and promoter. The latter components were positioned between two syntheticlac operators.Lac repressor expression was driven by a simian cytomegalovirus promoter. In transient co-transfection assays, hGH expression from cultured C2C12 myoblasts could be modulated up to 60-fold (P = 0.002) with the inducing agent, isopropyl-β-d-thiogalactoside (IPTG). In the absence of IPTG, hGH expression was almost fully repressed. These results show that the components of theE. coli lac operon provide a stringent regulatory system for use in myoblasts. The system might prove to be useful for the regulation of transferred genes in animals.     

Axenic Cultivation of Entamoeba dispar Brumpt 1925, Entamoeba insolita Geiman and Wichterman 1937 and Entamoeba ranarum Grassi 1879

ABSTRACT. Three species of Entamoeba have been grown in axenic culture for the first time. In two cases, novel methods for adapting the organisms to growth without bacteria were employed. While E. ranarum was axenized by the classic technique of Diamond, from a monoxenic culture with Trypanosoma cruzi as the associate, both E. dispar and E. insolita were first grown in axenic culture medium supplemented with lethally irradiated bacteria. From there, E. insolita was axenized directly, but E. dispar initially required the presence of fixed bacteria. After prolonged culture under this technically axenic but unwieldy culture system, E. dispar was eventually adapted to growth in the absence of added bacteria.     

Action of Cystine in the Cytotoxic Response of Escherichia Coli Cells Exposed to Hydrogen Peroxide

Cystine markedly enhanced the cytotoxic response of Escherichia coli cells to concentrations of hydrogen peroxide resulting in mode one killing, but displayed little effect in mode two killed cells. The effect of cystine was concentration-dependent over a range of 5-50 μM and did not further increase at higher levels. Cystine had similar effects in other bacterial systems.

In order to sensitize the cells to the oxidative injury, the amino acid must be present during exposure to the oxidant since no enhancement of the cytotoxic response can be observed in cystine pre-loaded cells. In addition, no further enhancement of cytotoxicity could be detected when cystine was added before and left during challenge with the oxidant. The enhancing effect of cystine on oxidative injury of E. coli cells appears to be directly mediated by the amino acid and in fact cysteic acid, the most likely oxidation product, had no effect on the killing of bacterial cells elicited by hydrogen peroxide. Other disulfide compounds such as oxidized glutathione, cystamine and dithionitrobenzoic acid only slightly increased the susceptibility of bacteria to the oxidant. The effect of the disulfides was not concentration-dependent over a range of 200-800 μM and was statistically significant only for cystamine.

Taken together, these results indicate that cystine markedly increases the cytotoxic response of bacteria to hydrogen peroxide and suggest that the amino acid might impair the cellular defence machinery against hydrogen peroxide. This effect may involve a thiol-disulfide exchange reaction at the cell membrane level.     

Comparison of the glycolipid-binding specificities of cholera toxin and porcineEscherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin: identification of a receptor-active non-ganglioside glycolipid for the heat-labile toxin in infant rabbit small intestine

The binding specificities of cholera toxin andEscherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin were investigated by binding of¹²⁵I-labelled toxins to reference glycosphingolipids separated on thin-layer chromatograms and coated in microtitre wells. The binding of cholera toxin was restricted to the GM1 ganglioside. The heat-labile toxin showed the highest affinity for GM1 but also bound, though less strongly, to the GM2, GD2 and GD1b gangliosides and to the non-acid glycosphingolipids gangliotetraosylceramide and lactoneotetraosylceramide. The infant rabbit small intestine, a model system for diarrhoea induced by the toxins, was shown to contain two receptor-active glycosphingolipids for the heat-labile toxin, GM1 ganglioside and lactoneotetraosylceramide, whereas only the GM1 ganglioside was receptor-active for cholera toxin. Preliminary evidence was obtained, indicating that epithelial cells of human small intestine also contain lactoneotetraosylceramide and similar sequences. By computer-based molecular modelling, lactoneotetraosylceramide was docked into the active site of the heat-labile toxin, using the known crystal structure of the toxin in complex with lactose. Interactions which may explain the relatively high toxin affinity for this receptor were found.Abbreviations CT cholera toxin - CT-B B-subunits of cholera toxin - LT Escherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin - hLT humanEscherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin - pLT porcineEscherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin - EI electron ionization