CRM1-dependent nuclear export and dimerization with hMSH5 contribute to the regulation of hMSH4 subcellular localization

MSH4 and MSH5 are members of the MutS homolog family, a conserved group of proteins involved in DNA mismatch correction and homologous recombination. Although several studies have provided compelling evidences suggesting that MSH4 and MSH5 could act together in early and late stages of meiotic recombination, their precise roles are poorly understood and recent findings suggest that the human MSH4 protein may also exert a cytoplasmic function. Here we show that MSH4 is present in the cytoplasm and the nucleus of both testicular cells and transfected somatic cells. Confocal studies on transfected cells provide the first evidence that the subcellular localization of MSH4 is regulated, at least in part, by an active nuclear export pathway dependent on the exportin CRM1. We used deletion mapping and mutagenesis to define two functional nuclear export sequences within the C-terminal part of hMSH4 that mediate nuclear export through the CRM1 pathway. Our results suggest that CRM1 is also involved in MSH5 nuclear export. In addition, we demonstrate that dimerization of MSH4 and MSH5 facilitates their nuclear localization suggesting that dimerization may regulate the intracellular trafficking of these proteins. Our findings suggest that nucleocytoplasmic traffic may constitute a regulatory mechanism for MSH4 and MSH5 functions.     

轮状病毒肠毒素NSP4:一个多功能糖蛋白

轮状病毒(rotavirus,RV)是在世界范围内造成婴幼儿和幼年动物病毒性腹泻的最主要病原。A组RV的NSP4蛋白被认为是病毒的肠毒素,近年来的研究发现,这个非结构蛋白NSP4在RV致病过程中起着重要的作用。本文简要综述了多功能肠毒素NSP4的研究进展。     

Molecular properties of 4-substituted indole-3-acetic acids affecting pea pericarp elongation

Pea (Pisum sativum L.) fruit naturally contain the auxins, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and 4-chloroindole-3-acetic acid (4-Cl-IAA). However, only 4-Cl-IAA can substitute for the seeds in maintaining pea fruit growth in planta. The importance of the substituent at the 4-position of the indole ring was tested by comparing the molecular properties of 4-X-IAA (X = H, Me, Et, F, or Cl) and their effect on the elongation of pea pericarps in planta. Structure-activity is discussed in terms of structural data derived from X-ray analysis, computed conformations in solution, semiempirical shape and bulk parameters, and experimentally determined lipophilicities and NH-acidities. The size of the 4-substituent, and its lipophilicity are associated with growth promoting activity of pea pericarp, while there was no obvious relationship with electromeric effects.     

2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and kinetin in anther culture of cultivated and wild oats and their interspecific crosses: plant regeneration from A. sativa L.

The effect of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and kinetin was studied in anther culture of oat Avena sativa L., wild oat A. sterilis L. and progeny of crosses between them. A high 2,4-D concentration (5–6 mg l^–1) increased embryo production in genotypes of both species and promoted plant regeneration in anther cultures of A. sterilis and A. sativa×A. sterilis progeny, while kinetin caused severe browning. However, a low concentration of kinetin was essential for initiation of regenerable embryos from anther culture of A. sativa cv. Kolbu: one green and one albino plant were produced. In addition, medium containing W₁₄ salts gave higher regenerant recovery compared with medium containing Murashge and Skoog salts, when cross progeny were tested. Received: 6 March 1998 / Revised: 30 April 1998 / Accepted: 16 November 1998     

An HPLC‐ESMS study on the solid‐phase assembly of C‐terminal proline peptides

DKP formation is a serious side reaction during the solid‐phase synthesis of peptide acids containing either Pro or Gly at the C‐terminus. This side reaction not only leads to a lower overall yield, but also to the presence in the reaction crude of several deletion peptides lacking the first amino acids. For the preparation of protected peptides using the Fmoc/tBu strategy, the use of a ClTrt‐Cl‐resin with a limited incorporation of the C‐terminal amino acid is the method of choice. The use of resins with higher loading levels leads to more impure peptide crudes. The use of HPLC‐ESMS is a useful method for analysing complex samples, such as those formed when C‐terminal Pro peptides are prepared by non‐optimized solid‐phase strategies. Copyright © 1999 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

硝酸盐、镁盐对林可霉素生物合成的促进作用

在林肯链霉菌生物合成林可霉素代谢调节的研究中,发现硝酸盐可明显促进林可霉素的生物合成．加入硝酸钾０．８％,林肯链霉菌合成林可霉素的产量可增加３７％．在发酵９６ｈ之前加入硝酸盐均能促进林可霉毒的合成,但产量的增加随加入时间的延迟而降低．硝酸钾在促进产量的同时,使菌体生长减少,看来硝酸盐对林可霉素的合成与菌体生长之间起着调节作用．洗涤菌体试验指出,硝酸盐的加入诱导了林可霉素合成所需要的酶系,这可能是加入硝酸盐后,产生进一步氮代谢的结果;蛋白胨不能代替硝酸盐,进一步说明硝酸钾的作用并不是作为氮源利用．在蛋白质合成抑制剂氯霉素存在下,硝酸盐不再能促进林可霉素的合成,说明氯霉素抑制了硝酸盐或其代谢中间物所诱导的酶系的合成．同时还报导了镁盐促进林可霉素生物合成现象的初步观察结果．硫酸镁在促进林可霉素产量提高的同时,使菌体生长延迟．硫酸镁的这种作用机制可能是通过磷酸镁铵沉淀,降低了培养基中游离氨和可溶性磷酸盐浓度,解除了铵盐和磷酸盐对林可霉素合成的抑制．     

Expression of antimicrobial peptides thanatin(S) in transgenic Arabidopsis enhanced resistance to phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria

Thanatin(S) is an analog of thanatin, an insect antimicrobial peptide possessing strong and broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity. In order to investigate if the thanatin could be used in engineering transgenic plants for increased resistance against phytopathogens, the synthetic thanatin(S) was introduced into Arabidopsis thaliana plants. To increase the expression level of thanatin(S) in plants, the coding sequence was optimized by plant-preference codon. To avoid cellular protease degradation, signal peptide of rice Cht1 was fused to N terminal of thanatin(S) for secreting the expressed thanatin(S) into intercellular spaces. To evaluate the application value of thanatin(S) in plant disease control, the synthesized coding sequence of Cht1 signal peptide (Cht1SP)-thanatin(S) was ligated to plant gateway destination binary vectors pGWB11 (with FLAG tag). Meanwhile, in order to observe the subcellular localization of Cht1SP-thanatin(S)-GFP and thanatin(S)-GFP, the sequences of Cht1SP-thanatin(S) and thanatin(S) were respectively linked to pGWB5 (with GFP tag). The constructs were transformed into Arabidopsis ecotype Col-0 and mutant pad4-1 via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The transformants with Cht1SP-thanatin(S)-FLAG fusion gene were analyzed by genomic PCR, real-time PCR, and western blots and the transgenic Arabidopsis plants introduced respectively Cht1SP-thanatin(S)-GFP and thanatin(S)-GFP were observed by confocal microscopy. Transgenic plants expressing Cht1SP-thanatin(S)-FLAG fusion protein showed antifungal activity against Botrytis cinerea and powdery mildew, as well as antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato. And the results from confocal observation showed that the GFP signal from Cht1SP-thanatin(S)-GFP transgenic Arabidopsis plants occurred mainly in intercellular space, while that from thanatin(S)-GFP transgenic plants was mainly detected in the cytoplasm and that from empty vector transgenic plants was distributed uniformly throughout the cell, demonstrating that Cht1 signal peptide functioned. In addition, thanatin(S) and thanatin(S)-FLAG chemically synthesized have both in vitro antimicrobial activities against P. syringae pv. tomato and B. cinerea. So, thanatin(S) is an ideal candidate AMPs for the construction of transgenic crops endowed with a broad-spectrum resistance to phytopathogens and the strategy is feasible to link a signal peptide to the target gene.     

抗菌肽CM4基因克隆及其在毕赤酵母中的表达鉴定

为了在毕赤酵母中获得抗菌肽CM4表达,将抗菌肽CM4基因克隆入表达质粒pPIC9,SacⅠ线性化的重组表达质粒pPIC9-CM4电击转化P.pastorisGS115(his-),采用MM、MD板和PCR法筛选Mut 表型,甲醇诱导表达;抗菌活性检测、Tricine-SDS-PAGE及酸性活性电泳均表明抗菌肽CM4在毕赤酵母中成功地分泌表达;重组抗菌肽CM4对黑曲霉(Aspergillus niger)、绿色木霉(Trichoderma viride)都有很强的抑菌活性。