北山羊角化学成分解析

本文以北山羊角为主要研究对象,利用傅里叶变换红外光谱仪、气相色谱仪和全自动氨基酸分析仪检测分析其红外光谱、脂肪酸和氨基酸成分。结果表明:北山羊角红外光谱主要体现角蛋白组分的特征峰,其中1 540 cm~(-1)、1 653 cm~(-1)、3 061cm~(-1)归属于角蛋白分子中酰胺类成分;1 454 cm~(-1)、2 875 cm~(-1)、2 963 cm~(-1)归属于角蛋白分子中脂类成分;北山羊角共检测出10种脂肪酸组分,主要成分包括棕榈酸、油酸、山俞酸,它们占脂肪酸总量的53.9%;17种氨基酸组分,总量为976.62 mg/g。     

Testing and validating a modified CTAB DNA extraction method to enable molecular parentage analysis of fertilized eggs and larvae of an emerging South African aquaculture species,the dusky kob Argyrosomus japonicus

This study describes the successful implementation of a modified cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) protocol to isolate genomic DNA and amplify 14 microsatellite markers from fertilized eggs and larvae of an emerging South African farmed marine fish species, the dusky kob Argyrosomus japonicus. To test and validate the efficiency of this method, genetic data were utilized to resolve parentage and kinship of first‐generation (F1) offspring produced in mass‐spawning events of wild broodstock fish in a commercial hatchery.     

Regulation of RAGE splicing by hnRNP A1 and Tra2β‐1 and its potential role in AD pathogenesis

The receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) gene expresses two major alternative splicing isoforms, full‐length membrane‐bound RAGE (mRAGE) and secretory RAGE (esRAGE). Both isoforms play important roles in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis, either via interaction of mRAGE with β‐amyloid peptide (Aβ) or inhibition of the mRAGE‐activated signaling pathway. In the present study, we showed that heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNP A1) and Transformer2β‐1 (Tra2β‐1) were involved in the alternative splicing of mRAGE and esRAGE. Functionally, two factors had an antagonistic effect on the regulation. Glucose deprivation induced an increased ratio of mRAGE/esRAGE via up‐regulation of hnRNP A1 and down‐regulation of Tra2β‐1. Moreover, the ratios of mRAGE/esRAGE and hnRNP A1/Tra2β‐1 were increased in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from AD patients. The results provide a molecular basis for altered splicing of mRAGE and esRAGE in AD pathogenesis.

     

微循环在阿尔茨海默病发生发展中的作用

微循环障碍是导致肌体局部组织或脏器功能降低的重要原因之一,与衰老、退行性变、免疫功能紊乱等多种疾病的发生发展密切相关.阿尔茨海默病患者中枢神经系统的能量代谢失调、缺血缺氧、代谢产物积累等均累及微循环.本文就甲醛和核糖代谢失调导致的微循环障碍与阿尔茨海默病的典型病理改变(Tau蛋白过度磷酸化、β淀粉样蛋白沉积及认知损伤)之间的关系进行了讨论.     

Positive selection of digestive Cys proteases in herbivorous Coleoptera

Positive selection is thought to contribute to the functional diversification of insect-inducible protease inhibitors in plants in response to selective pressures exerted by the digestive proteases of their herbivorous enemies. Here we assessed whether a reciprocal evolutionary process takes place on the insect side, and whether ingestion of a positively selected plant inhibitor may translate into a measurable rebalancing of midgut proteases in vivo. Midgut Cys proteases of herbivorous Coleoptera, including the major pest Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata), were first compared using a codon-based evolutionary model to look for the occurrence of hypervariable, positively selected amino acid sites among the tested sequences. Hypervariable sites were found, distributed within –or close to– amino acid regions interacting with Cys-type inhibitors of the plant cystatin protein family. A close examination of L. decemlineata sequences indicated a link between their assignment to protease functional families and amino acid identity at positively selected sites. A function-diversifying role for positive selection was further suggested empirically by in vitro protease assays and a shotgun proteomic analysis of L. decemlineata Cys proteases showing a differential rebalancing of protease functional family complements in larvae fed single variants of a model cystatin mutated at positively selected amino acid sites. These data confirm overall the occurrence of hypervariable, positively selected amino acid sites in herbivorous Coleoptera digestive Cys proteases. They also support the idea of an adaptive role for positive selection, useful to generate functionally diverse proteases in insect herbivores ingesting functionally diverse, rapidly evolving dietary cystatins.     

Retinoic acid-induced upregulation of the metalloendopeptidase nardilysin is accelerated by co-expression of the brain-specific protein p42(IP4) (centaurin α1; ADAP1) in neuroblastoma cells

The mainly neuronally expressed protein p42^IP4 (centaurin α1; ADAP1), which interacts with the metalloendopeptidase nardilysin (NRD) was found to be localized in neuritic plaques in Alzheimer disease (AD) brains. NRD was shown to enhance the cleavage of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) by α-secretases, thereby increasing the release of neuroprotective sAPPα. We here investigated in vitro the biochemical interaction of p42^IP4 and NRD and studied the physiological interaction in SH-SY5Y cells. NRD is a member of the M16 family of metalloendopeptidases. Some members of this M16 family act bi-functionally, as protease and as non-enzymatic scaffold protein. Here, we show that p42^IP4 enhances the enzymatic activity of NRD 3-4 times. However, p42^IP4 is not a substrate for NRD. Furthermore, we report that differentiation of SH-SY5Y cells by stimulation with 10 μM retinoic acid (RA) results in upregulation of NRD protein levels, with a 6-fold rise after 15 days. NRD is expressed in the neurites of RA-stimulated SH-SY5Y cells, and localized in vesicular structures. Since p42^IP4 is not expressed in untreated SH-SY5Y cells, we could use this cell system as a model to find out, whether there is a functional interaction. Interestingly, SH-SY5Y cells, which we stably transfected with GFP-tagged-p42^IP4 showed an enhanced NRD protein expression already at an earlier time point after RA stimulation.     

Rv0989c encodes a novel (E)-geranyl diphosphate synthase facilitating decaprenyl diphosphate biosynthesis in Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) has a highly complex cell wall, which is required for both bacterial survival and infection. Cell wall biosynthesis is dependent on decaprenyl diphosphate as a glyco-carrier, which is hence an essential metabolite in this pathogen. Previous biochemical studies indicated (E)-geranyl diphosphate (GPP) is required for the synthesis of decaprenyl diphosphate. Here we demonstrate that Rv0989c encodes the “missing” GPP synthase, representing the first such enzyme to be characterized from bacteria, and which presumably is involved in decaprenyl diphosphate biosynthesis in Mtb. Our investigation also has revealed previously unrecognized substrate plasticity of the farnesyl diphosphate synthases from Mtb, resolving previous discrepancies between biochemical and genetic studies of cell wall biosynthesis.     

Interactions of interleukin-8 with the human chemokine receptor CXCR1 in phospholipid bilayers by NMR spectroscopy

CXCR1 is a receptor for the chemokine interleukin-8 (IL-8), a mediator of immune and inflammatory responses. Strategically located in the cell membrane, CXCR1 binds to IL-8 with high affinity and subsequently transduces a signal across the membrane bilayer to a G-protein-activated second messenger system. Here, we describe NMR studies of the interactions between IL-8 and human CXCR1 in lipid environments. Functional full-length and truncated constructs of CXCR1 and full-length IL-8 were uniformly ¹⁵N-labeled by expression in bacteria followed by purification and refolding. The residues responsible for interactions between IL-8 and the N-terminal domain of CXCR1 were identified by specific chemical shift perturbations of assigned resonances on both IL-8 and CXCR1. Solution NMR signals from IL-8 in q = 0.1 isotropic bicelles disappeared completely when CXCR1 in lipid bilayers was added in a 1:1 molar ratio, indicating that binding to the receptor-containing bilayers immobilizes IL-8 (on the ∼ 10⁵ Hz timescale) and broadens the signals beyond detection. The same solution NMR signals from IL-8 were less affected by the addition of N-terminal truncated CXCR1 in lipid bilayers, demonstrating that the N-terminal domain of CXCR1 is mainly responsible for binding to IL-8. The interaction is tight enough to immobilize IL-8 along with the receptor in phospholipid bilayers and is specific enough to result in well-aligned samples in oriented sample solid-state NMR spectra. A combination of solution NMR and solid-state NMR studies of IL-8 in the presence of various constructs of CXCR1 enables us to propose a model for the multistep binding process.