基于多基因序列分析对尖孢镰孢菌古巴专化型（香蕉枯萎病菌）生理小种的鉴定

由尖孢镰孢菌古巴专化型Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense, Foc引起的香蕉枯萎病是香蕉生产上的毁灭性病害,自1996年以来已对我国华南地区香蕉生产造成了严重危害。传统上香蕉枯萎病菌生理小种的鉴定主要采用人工接种鉴别寄主尔后测定病菌致病性的方法,但实验周期长,且受季节影响。以来自澳大利亚的香蕉枯萎病菌生理小种1号（BW1）、2号（Race 2）、3号（Race 3）以及亚热带4号（BW4）为对照,对分离自我国华南地区主要香蕉产区（广东、广西、海南、福建等省区）的14株香蕉枯萎病菌的单孢菌株进行致病性测定,并结合热带4号小种（TR4）和亚热带4号小种（ST4）的分子特异检测方法,确定其生理小种类型;同时,利用ITS、TEF-1α、IGS、histone H3、β-tubulin等 5个主要用于镰孢菌系统发育学研究的基因,研究不同地区不同来源的Foc菌株之间的亲缘关系及其与非病原尖孢镰孢菌的关系,并评价这5个基因在香蕉枯萎病菌生理小种鉴定上的应用价值。研究结果表明：（1）来源于我国华南地区的4号小种主要为热带4号小种;（2）TEF-1α、IGS、histone H3等3个基因片段能够将Foc中不同生理小种的菌株划分成不同的系统发育谱系,与致病性测定的结果具有对应关系,也能较好地反映尖孢镰孢菌种内菌株的亲缘关系,可用于香蕉枯萎病菌生理小种鉴定;（3）我国Foc 1号生理小种的遗传多样性高于4号生理小种,Foc 1号生理小种的菌系与来自香蕉果实上的非病原尖孢镰孢菌的亲缘关系比其与Foc 4号生理小种的菌系的亲缘关系更近。     

Profile of Overweight and Obese People in a Mediterranean Region

Objective: To assess the prevalence of excess weight (obesity and overweight) and the related environmental risk factors in a Mediterranean population. Self‐perception of body weight, attitudes toward weight‐control behaviors, and the associated factors were also examined. Research Methods and Procedures: A cross‐sectional nutritional survey was carried out in the Balearic Islands between 1999 and 2000. A random sample (n = 1200) of the adult population (20 to 60 years old) was interviewed. Dietary questionnaires and a global questionnaire incorporating questions related to sociodemographic and lifestyle variables were utilized. Anthropometric measurements were also obtained. Results: Nearly one‐half of the population of the Balearic Islands is above the normal weight range (BMI > 25). The predictors of overweight and obesity in the Balearic Islands are to be over 40 years old, to be married, to form part of the lowest educational levels, and to have a sedentary lifestyle. A large percentage of excess‐weight individuals tend to underestimate their BMI, are not concerned about their weight status, tend to snack more often, and have never dieted. Discussion: Although the likely causes of the rise in obesity prevalence are difficult to elucidate from this study, we have identified the profile of individuals with excess weight in the Balearic Islands as well as their attitudes toward their body image.     

Polymorphic sequence‐characterized codominant loci in the chestnut blight fungus,Cryphonectria parasitica

Studies on the population biology of the chestnut blight fungus, Cryphonectria parasitica, have previously been carried out with dominant restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) fingerprinting markers. In this study, we describe the development of 11 codominant markers from randomly amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs). RAPD fragments were cloned and sequenced, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primers were designed flanking insertions/deletions. Primers labelled with fluorescent dyes were combined in multiplex reactions to assay five or six loci simultaneously in a capillary sequencing system. These codominant markers have the potential to complement RFLP methods for studying C. parasitica.     

A protocol for rapid isolation of flanking regions from short known sequences

We present a method for rapid isolation of flanking regions from amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fragments based on thermal asymmetric interlaced (TAIL)-PCR, in which one sequence-specific primer and one degenerate primer derived from an conserved motif found in homologies of the known sequence were used. The final result showed this to be a simple and efficient strategy, especially for short known sequences containing coding regions. Moreover this protocol was especially useful for species with little available genome information such as Hongkong Kumquat (Fortunella hindsii), since most of their genes have known homologies in other species such asArabidopsis and rice.     

Testing alternative captive breeding strategies with the subsequent release into the wild

We used the housefly (Musca domestica L.) as an experimental model to compare two strategies for the captive breeding of an endangered species: a strategy to minimize inbreeding and balance founder contributions (termed “MAI” for “maximum avoidance of inbreeding”) versus a scheme to select against less fit individuals (disregarding relatedness). By balancing the initial founder contributions, the MAI protocol was analogous to methods for minimizing kinship. In both breeding strategies, the population growth rate was limited to a maximum increase of 50% per generation. Five replicate populations, each starting with five male–female pairs, were subjected to five generations of captive breeding. Six generations of simulated “release into the wild” allowed ad lib breeding with less restrictive population growth potential, in either a benign or stressful environment (i.e., constant or variable temperature). Population size, fecundity, and fertility were assayed throughout the experiment, with juvenile‐to‐adult survival assayed in the second phase of the project. Allozyme assays determined the resultant inbreeding coefficients from the captive breeding schemes. The MAI breeding scheme resulted in significantly lower inbreeding coefficients and higher fitness, with qualitatively reduced extinction potential, most notable in the stressful environment. Spontaneous fitness rebounds suggested that the MAI strategy facilitated some form of purging of inbreeding depression effects. Importantly, the advantages of the MAI strategy were difficult to detect during the captive breeding phase, suggesting that the long‐term advantages of the MAI approach could be underestimated in actual breeding programs. We concur with the common recommendation of maximum avoidance of inbreeding at least for systems with low reproductive potential. Zoo Biol 0:1–18, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

肝癌组织中线粒体DNA D-Loop区碱基变异与ROS水平

为了探讨ROS水平与突变的关系,对原发性肝癌线粒体DNA区的突变情况进行研究,同时对原发性肝癌患者组织细胞内ROS进行测定。选择20例原发性肝癌组织及其邻近的癌旁组织,用PCR方法将线粒体DNA D-Loop扩增后测序。组织内ROS的水平采用流式细胞技术测定。结果表明在20对原发性肝癌组织中存在8对mtDNA突变,突变率为40%,共发现突变位点53个,包括2个插入,11个缺失,40个点突变,其中T-C,C-T的转换占75%,4个属于微卫星结构。癌组织突变一般伴有癌旁组织突变,癌组织突变位点高于癌旁组织。发现一例标本的癌组织和癌旁组织均有大片段丢失。原发性肝癌组织内ROS水平明显高于癌旁对照( P<0.01),同时我们发现在区发生突变的患者的组织中ROS水平明显高于未发生突变的肝癌组织标本（P<0.01）,发生突变的癌旁组织内ROS水平明显高于未发生突变的癌旁组织（P<0.01）。结论 (1)线粒体DNA D-Loop区是一个高度多态性和突变性的区域,在原发性肝癌中突变率较高。(2)肝癌患者组织细胞内ROS异常,提示肝癌的线粒体DNA发生的点突变及肝癌的发生可能与ROS升高有关。     

鸡痘病毒复制非必需区的选择对重组鸡痘病毒免疫效力的影响

母源抗体的干扰是重组鸡痘病毒(FPV)活载体疫苗至今未能得到大规模推广应用的主要原因,而选择适当的FPV复制非必需区可能是解决这一问题的方法之一。根据已发表的美国致病株FPV的基因组设计两对引物,用PCR方法扩增FPV假定复制非必需区的两个侧翼区FPV1和FPV2 ,利用此假定复制非必需区构建FPV表达载体pP12LS及表达ZJ1株新城疫病毒(NDV)F基因的转移载体pP12LSF。pP12LSF与2 82E4株FPV共转染鸡胚成纤维细胞(CEF) ,经数轮蓝斑筛选得到纯化的重组病毒rFPV_FSC。重组FPV在CEF上连续传2 0代仍具有良好的遗传稳定性。对重组FPV进行免疫效力试验,在SPF鸡上,重组病毒rFPV_FSC和与之仅有复制非必需区差异的rFPV_FSB均能抵抗NDV强毒的攻击,提供10 0 %的保护。但在有母源抗体的商品鸡上,rFPV_FSC与rFPV_FSB的免疫效力却有显著差异,保护率分别为10 0 %和6 1 5 4 % ,rFPV_FSC的免疫效力与NDV常规油苗相当。试验结果表明,母源抗体对重组FPV的免疫效力有一定的影响,而选择合适的FPV复制非必需区是克服母源抗体并提高重组FPV免疫效力的有效策略之一     

Hierarchical analyses of genetic variation of samples from breeding and feeding grounds confirm the genetic partitioning of northwest Atlantic and South Atlantic populations of swordfish (Xiphias gladius L.)

In species with high migratory potential, the genetic signal revealing population differentiation is often obscured by population admixture. To our knowledge, the explicit comparison of genetic samples from known spawning and feeding areas has not been conducted for any highly migratory pelagic fish species. This study examines the geographic heterogeneity of swordfish mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineages within the Atlantic Ocean using 330 base pairs of sequence of the control region from 480 individuals. Hierarchical analyses of sequence variation were conducted to test whether samples from areas identified as the corresponding spawning and feeding grounds for the northwest (NW) Atlantic (Caribbean and Georges Banks-US northeast) and the South Atlantic (Brazil-Uruguay and Gulf of Guinea), were more closely related to each other than to samples from any other region, including the Mediterranean Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the Pacific Ocean. Phylogeographic analyses reveal that swordfish mtDNA phylogeny is characterized by incomplete lineage sorting and secondary contact of two highly divergent clades. However, despite this complex phylogenetic signature, results from an analysis of nucleotide diversity and from an analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) were for the most part concordant and indicate that NW Atlantic and South Atlantic swordfish belong to separate populations. The mtDNA distinctiveness of NW Atlantic and South Atlantic swordfish populations is indicative of philopatric behavior in swordfish towards breeding and feeding areas.     

Evidence for strong inter- and intracontinental phylogeographic structure in Amanita muscaria, a wind-dispersed ectomycorrhizal basidiomycete

A growing number of molecular studies show that many fungi have phylogeographic structures and that their distinct lineages are usually limited to different continents. As a conservative test of the extent to which wind-dispersed mycorrhizal fungi may exhibit phylogeographic structure, we chose to study Amanita muscaria, a host-generalist, widespread, wind-dispersed fungus. In this paper, we document the existence of several distinct phylogenetic species within A. muscaria, based on multilocus DNA sequence data. According to our findings, A. muscaria has strong intercontinental genetic disjunctions, and, more surprisingly, has strong intracontinental phylogeographic structure, particularly within North America, often corresponding to certain habitats and/or biogeographic provinces. Our results indicate that the view of A. muscaria as a common, widespread, easily identifiable, ecologically plastic fungus with a wide niche does not correctly represent the ecological and biological realities. On the contrary, the strong associations between phylogenetic species and different habitats support the developing picture of ecoregional endemisms and relatively narrow to very narrow niches for some lineages.     

Identification of the critical regions in hepatitis B virus preS required for its stability.

As a hepatitis B virus (HBV) envelope domain, preS plays significant roles in receptor recognition and viral infection. However, the regions critical for maintaining a stable and functional conformation of preS are still unclear and require further investigation. In order to unravel these regions, serially truncated fragments of preS were constructed and expressed in Escherichia coli. Their solubility, stability, secondary structure, and affinity to polyclonal antibodies and hepatocytes were examined. The results showed that amino acids 31-36 were vital for its stable conformation, and the absence of 10-36 amino acids significantly reduced its binding to polyclonal antibodies as well as hepatocytes. The most stable fragment 1-120 (preS1 + N-terminal 12 amino acids of preS2), perhaps the core of preS, was discovered, which bound to HepG2 cells most tightly. Moreover, the availability of large amounts of well-folded and stable preS1-120 enables us to carry out further structural determination and mechanistic study on HBV infection.