TLR4全长及其截断体重组腺病毒的制备和功能鉴定

制备脂多糖 (LPS)Toll样受体 4 (TLR4 )全长及其胞内段缺失的TLR4截断体 (ΔTLR4 )的绿色荧光蛋白重组腺病毒并鉴定其功能 .用PCR方法扩增TLR4及ΔTLR4基因片段 ,酶切后亚克隆至腺病毒穿梭质粒中 ,形成带有目的基因的穿梭载体pAdTrack TLR4和pAdTrack ΔTLR4 .用BJ5 1 83细菌同源重组法将目的基因重组于腺病毒骨架载体中 ;将重组腺病毒质粒用PacⅠ酶切线性化后 ,用脂质体法转染HEK 2 93细胞进行腺病毒的包装扩增 .将重组腺病毒感染CHO K1细胞 ,采用荧光毒酶报告基因方法检测其对LPS诱导NF κB激活的影响 .酶切及测序表明 ,TLR4全长及其截断体ΔTLR4的重组腺病毒载体构建正确 .荧光素酶报告基因检测结果表明 ,TLR4全长及其截断体的重组腺病毒感染细胞对LPS诱导的反应具有不同的影响 ,Ad ΔTLR4明显抑制了LPS引起的NF κB激活 (P <0 0 5 ) ,Ad TLR4则使LPS引起的NF κB活性增强 (P <0 0 5 ) .LPS对细胞的激活作用依赖于TLR4的结构完整性     

小鼠Daintain/AIF-1基因启动子的克隆及其荧光素酶报告基因载体的构建

目的：对Daintain/AIF-1（大炎肽/同种异体移植炎症因子-1）基因启动子进行克隆并构建荧光素酶报告基因载体,为进一步研究Daintain/AIF-1的转录调控作用提供了质粒资源。方法：提取单核巨噬细胞系RAW264.7基因组DNA,以其为模板采用PCR方法克隆出Daintain/AIF-1基因5＇端UTR区1.6 kb DNA序列,将该序列同源重组到pGL3-Basic载体上,转化感受态DH5α并酶切鉴定和测序。结果：PCR产物片段与预期结果一致,Daintain/AIF-1基因5＇端UTR区1.6 kb DNA序列连接到pGL3-Basic载体上,构建成pGL3-Basic-Daintain/AIF-1（pGL3-Basic-DT）载体,酶切结果与理论预测值一致,经测序证实无碱基突变。结论：Daintain/AIF-1基因报告基因载体的构建为进一步研究Daintain/AIF-1转录调控作用提供了载体资源。     

辅助病毒依赖型腺病毒载体转基因的体外表达效率

构建可表达增强型绿色荧光蛋白 (Enhanced green fluorescent protein,EGFP) 的辅助病毒依赖型腺病毒载体 (Helper-dependent adenoviral vector,HDAd),并完成大量制备、纯化和体外表达鉴定。荧光显微镜证实HDAd/EGFP可表达,电镜下观察到经CsCl纯化后的腺病毒的典型形态。分光光度计法测定病毒的浓度为4.0×1012 颗粒数 (Virus particle,vp) /mL。与可表达EGFP的第一代腺病毒载体 (First generation adenoviral vector,FGAd) FGAd/EGFP进行了体外感染和转基因表达效率的比较研究,分别用约2 000 vp/细胞的HDAd/EGFP和FGAd/EGFP感染A549细胞,流式细胞仪检测EGFP的表达情况。通过相同时间点流式细胞仪分析EGFP的表达情况,可见HDAd/EGFP感染早期的A549细胞较FGAd/EGFP有更高的荧光表达率及更高的表达强度,显示HDAd载体具有转基因瞬时高表达的特性,是一种更有价值的疫苗载体。     

初次卵裂时间是猪克隆胚胎发育潜能的重要标识

初次卵裂时间与哺乳动物胚胎发育潜能有关．比较了不同初次卵裂时间(20～24 h,早期;25～36 h,中期;37～48 h,晚期;20～48 h,对照)的猪孤雌(parthenogenetic,PA)、体细胞核移植(somatic cell nuclear transfer,SCNT)胚胎的囊胚发育率、扩张囊胚发育率和囊胚细胞数,评价其体外发育能力．发现早期卵裂的PA胚胎发育到第6天的囊胚发育率显著高于中期、晚期以及对照组(P < 0.05;54.0% vs. 19.6%,5.4%,18.7%)．扩张囊胚发育率,早裂胚胎同样优于其他组．早期卵裂的SCNT胚胎发育到第6天的囊胚比率高于中期卵裂胚胎(32.2% vs. 23.5%),而晚期卵裂胚胎发育到囊胚的比率最低(6.3%)．早期卵裂的SCNT胚胎发育到第6天的扩张囊胚比率显著高于其余各组 (P < 0.05;18.9% vs. 5.9%、3.1%、7.4%)．囊胚细胞数在早期、中期、晚期三组之间表现出下降趋势．将早期卵裂的SCNT胚胎与未经挑选的对照组胚胎分别进行移植,观察其体内发育能力．移植早裂SCNT胚胎的受体在产仔数和克隆效率上均明显高于未经挑选胚胎的受体(4.7 vs. 2.1;3.9% vs. 0.9%),说明早裂胚胎着床后具有更强的发育能力．以上结果表明：初次卵裂时间可以作为猪克隆胚胎发育潜能的重要标识,选择早裂的胚胎进行移植,有助于提高克隆效率．     

法尼醇X受体激动剂细胞筛选体系的建立与优化

本研究旨在建立一种基于双荧光素酶报告基因检测体系的法尼醇X受体(farnesoid X receptor, FXR)激动剂细胞筛选体系,以满足对FXR激动剂先导化合物的高通量筛选。通过在报告基因质粒pGL4-luc2P-Hygro中的萤火虫荧光素酶(firefly luciferase,Luc)基因上游克隆并插入来自FXR靶基因的FXR反应元件(FXR response element,FXRE)片段,构建用于筛选FXR激动剂的报告基因质粒,并结合海肾荧光素酶内参质粒,建立能够有效反映药物对FXR激动效应的双荧光素酶报告基因细胞检测体系。通过一系列优化实验,比较了过表达RXR、鼠源和人源FXR、不同的FXRE片段、FXR过表达质粒与报告基因质粒的混合比对筛选体系诱导效率和灵敏度的影响。根据上述结果,最终确定了优化条件,优化后体系Z因子达到0.83。本研究建立了一种用于FXR激动剂筛选的改良的基于双荧光素酶报告基因检测体系的细胞筛选体系,其主要特征在于,使用多段FXR靶基因上的FXRE片段叠加组成一种新型的增强型FXRE元件,而非传统的反向重复序列-1 (inverted repeats...     

亚热带典型树种对模拟酸雨胁迫的高光谱响应

对亚热带地区6种典型树种幼苗在不同模拟酸雨梯度下的光谱响应特征进行了研究。结果表明,针叶树种和阔叶树种对酸雨敏感性具有明显差异。针叶树种马尾松、杉木和香榧对酸雨敏感性高于阔叶树种刨花楠、香樟和杨梅。针叶树种内部,马尾松和杉木叶绿素含量随酸雨浓度变化的幅度明显高于香榧;而阔叶树种内部,刨花楠、香樟和杨梅三者之间无显著差别。马尾松、香樟和香榧不能承受长时间高浓度酸雨胁迫,叶绿素含量呈先增加后减少趋势,杉木则先减少后增加,杨梅能承受长时间高浓度酸雨胁迫,pH值2.5处理下叶绿素含量高于pH值5.6处理。刨花楠4期试验中叶绿素含量变化无明显规律。各受试植物光谱反射率红边位置与其叶绿素含量变化规律基本一致。针叶树种马尾松和香榧主要表现为"蓝移",杉木则先"蓝移"后"红移",表现出对高浓度酸雨长时间的抗性;阔叶树种香樟先"红移"后"蓝移",对高浓度模拟酸雨表现出先促进后抑制现象,杨梅光谱反射率一阶导数曲线比较平缓,无明显"红移"和"蓝移"现象,刨花楠则"红移"和"蓝移"交替出现,与其叶绿素含量变化相一致,对酸雨敏感性不明显。     

Developmental plasticity and evolutionary explanations

Developmental plasticity looks like a promising bridge between ecological and developmental perspectives on evolution. Yet, there is no consensus on whether plasticity is part of the explanation for adaptive evolution or an optional “add‐on” to genes and natural selection. Here, we suggest that these differences in opinion are caused by differences in the simplifying assumptions, and particular idealizations, that enable evolutionary explanation. We outline why idealizations designed to explain evolution through natural selection prevent an understanding of the role of development, and vice versa. We show that representing plasticity as a reaction norm conforms with the idealizations of selective explanations, which can give the false impression that plasticity has no explanatory power for adaptive evolution. Finally, we use examples to illustrate why evolutionary explanations that include developmental plasticity may in fact be more satisfactory than explanations that solely refer to genes and natural selection.     

Determinants and long‐term costs of early reproduction in males of a long‐lived polygynous mammal

In long‐lived polygynous species, male reproductive success is often monopolized by a few mature dominant individuals. Young males are generally too small to be dominant and may employ alternative tactics; however, little is known about the determinants of reproductive success for young males. Understanding the causes and consequences of variability in early reproductive success may be crucial to assess the strength of sexual selection and possible long‐term trade‐offs among life‐history traits. Selective pressures driven by fluctuating environmental conditions may depend on age class. We evaluated the determinants of reproduction in male bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) aged 2–4 years using 30 years of individual‐level data. These young males cannot defend estrous ewes and use alternative mating tactics. We also investigated how the age of first detected reproduction was correlated to lifetime reproductive success and longevity. We found that reproductive success of males aged 3 years was positively correlated to body mass, to the proportion of males aged 2–4 years in the competitor pool, and to the number of females available per adult male. These results suggest that reproductive success depends on both competitive ability and population age–sex structure. None of these variables, however, had significant effects on the reproductive success of males aged 2 or 4 years. Known reproduction before the age of five increased lifetime reproductive success but decreased longevity, suggesting a long‐term survival cost of early reproduction. Our analyses reveal that both individual‐level phenotypic and population‐level demographic variables influence reproductive success by young males and provide a rare assessment of fitness trade‐offs in wild polygynous males.     

Functional and structural roles of the N-terminal extension in Methanosarcina acetivorans protoglobin

Functional and structural properties of protoglobin from Methanosarcina acetivorans, whose Cys(101)E20 residue was mutated to Ser (MaPgb*), and of mutants missing either the first 20 N-terminal amino acids (MaPgb*-ΔN20 mutant), or the first 33 N-terminal amino acids [N-terminal loop of 20 amino acids and a 13-residue Z-helix, preceding the globin fold A-helix; (MaPgb*-ΔN20Z mutant)] have been investigated. In keeping with the MaPgb*-ΔN20 mutant crystal structure, here reported at 2.0 Å resolution, which shows an increased exposure of the haem propionates to the solvent, the analysis of ligand binding kinetics highlights high accessibility of ligands to the haem pocket in ferric MaPgb*-ΔN20. CO binding to ferrous MaPgb*-ΔN20 displays a marked biphasic behavior, with a fast binding process close to that observed in MaPgb* and a slow carbonylation process, characterized by a rate-limiting step. Conversely, removal of the first 33 residues induces a substantial perturbation of the overall MaPgb* structure, with loss of α-helical content and potential partial collapse of the protein chain. As such, ligand binding kinetics are characterized by very slow rates that are independent of ligand concentration, this being indicative of a high energy barrier for ligand access to the haem, possibly due to localized misfolding. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Oxygen Binding and Sensing Proteins.