Purification of polyethylenimine polyplexes highlights the role of free polycations in gene transfer

BACKGROUND: Nonviral vectors based on polyethylenimine (PEI) usually contain an excess of PEI that is not complexed to DNA. Since unbound PEI contributes to cellular and systemic toxicity, purification of polyplexes from unbound PEI is desirable. METHODS: Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) was used to purify PEI polyplexes of free PEI. Transfection properties of purified polyplexes and the effect of free PEI on gene delivery were studied in vitro and in vivo after systemic application into mice. RESULTS: SEC did not change the size and zeta-potential of polyplexes. Independent of the amount of PEI used for complex formation, purified PEI polyplexes had the same final PEI nitrogen/DNA phosphate ratio of 2.5. Notably, purified PEI polyplexes demonstrated low cellular and systemic toxicity. High transfection efficiency was achieved with purified polyplexes at high DNA concentrations (8-15 microg/ml). At low DNA concentrations (2-4 microg/ml) gene transfer with purified particles was less efficient than with polyplexes containing free PEI both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistic studies showed that free PEI partly blocked cellular association of DNA complexes but was essential for the following intracellular gene delivery. Adding free PEI to cells treated with purified particles with a delay of up to 4 h resulted in significantly enhanced transfection efficiency compared with non-purified particles or purified particles without free PEI. CONCLUSIONS: This study presents an efficient method to remove free PEI from PEI polyplexes by SEC. Our results from transfection experiments demonstrate that free PEI substantially contributes to efficient gene expression but also mediates toxic effects in a dose-dependent manner. Purified polyplexes without free PEI have to be applied at increased concentrations to achieve high transfection levels, but exhibit a greatly improved toxicity profile.     

RNA干扰NUP88基因对人乳腺癌MCF-7细胞生长及侵袭力的影响

目的： 构建重组慢病毒介导的NUP88-shRNA载体,通过RNAi技术分别观察沉默NUP88后对MCF-7增殖,粘附,侵袭和转移情况的影响,为乳腺癌的临床基因治疗寻找新的靶点。方法： 构建NUP88重组慢病毒表达载体,包装后检测滴度,以最佳复感染指数转染乳腺癌MCF-7细胞,利用RT-PCR和Western blot检测各组MCF-7细胞中mRNA和蛋白的表达效率;MTT法和流式细胞仪检测法,检测NUP88基因被干扰后对MCF-7细胞增殖和凋亡的影响;细胞侵袭实验检测NUP88基因被干扰后对MCF-7侵袭力的影响。结果 四组病毒及一组阴性对照均构建成功,滴度均为4E+8TU/ml;RT-PCR和Western blot检测,结果表明：经NUP88-shRNA转染的MCF-7细胞组NUP88 mRNA和蛋白质的表达与经阴性转染组和空白MCF-7细胞组相比,差异明显具有统计学意义（P<0.01）;测定NUP88-shRNA1组沉默效率最高,沉默率可达到86%;MTT法结果表明：实验组经NUP88-shRNA1慢病毒转染后细胞增殖程度显著减少,与空白组和对照组相比有显著性差异（P<0.05）。流式细胞仪检测三组MCF-7细胞凋亡结果表明：实验组经慢病毒转染后细胞凋亡率显著增加,与对照组和空白组相比有显著性差异（P<0.05）;细胞侵袭实验表明：在肿瘤细胞常规培养24h后,实验组与空白组和阴性对照组比较,穿膜细胞数量明显减少,具有显著性差异（P<0.05） 结论： NUP88重组慢病毒可以通过RNAi成功抑制MCF-7中NUP88基因的表达,并能显著抑制其增殖及远处的侵袭能力。     

Integrated regulation of the photosynthetic gene family from Arabidopsis thaliana in transformed tobacco cells

Summary Expression of the three chlorophyll a/b binding protein (cab) genes of Arabidopsis thaliana was studied in transformed tobacco tissues. For each cab gene, approximately 1000 bp of the promoter region plus a portion of the structural gene was inserted into a promoter-expression vector such that a translational fusion between the cab gene and the promoter-less chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (cat) gene was formed. The constructed molecules were introduced into either cultured tobacco cells or tobacco leaves and the promoter activity was monitored as chloramphenicol acetyltransferase activity. The light-grown tissues exhibited 1.5- to 60-fold greater promoter activity than did dark-grown tissues. Expression of the cab promoters was tissue specific: activities were much stronger in green leaves than other tissues. The cab promoters were almost equally active in transformed calli or shoots derived from leaves. However, in cultured tobacco cells, one promoter was two to three times stronger than the other two. The chimeric gene fusion, cab-cat, segregated in the F1 generation as a dominant Mendelian trait.     

提高黏膜免疫的方法及研究进展

黏膜是很多病原体入侵机体的重要入口,黏膜疫苗能诱导产生黏膜保护性免疫应答和系统性免疫应答,阻止病原微生物黏附、入侵和繁殖。但多数候选黏膜疫苗的安全性、稳定性、免疫效力及保护作用还无法达到理想的效果,佐剂或载体的使用改善了黏膜疫苗存在的不足,使黏膜疫苗有了广阔的发展前景。文章综述了提高黏膜免疫的方法及研究进展。     

Cues used in host‐seeking behavior by frog‐biting midges (Corethrella spp. Coquillet)

We investigated the role of carbon dioxide and host temperature in host attraction in frog‐biting midges (Corethrella spp). In these midges, females are known to use frog calls to localize their host, but the role of other host‐emitted cues has yet not been investigated. We hypothesized that carbon dioxide acts as a supplemental cue to frog calls. To test this hypothesis, we determined the responses of the midges to carbon dioxide, frog calls, and both cues. A significantly lower number of midges are attracted to carbon dioxide and silent traps than to traps broadcasting frog calls. Adding carbon dioxide to the calls does not increase the attractiveness to the midges. Instead, carbon dioxide can have deterrent effects on frog‐biting midges. Temperature of calling frogs is not a cue potentially available to the midges. Contrary to our hypothesis, there was no supplemental effect of carbon dioxide when presented in conjunction to calls. Midge host‐seeking behavior strongly depends on the mating calls emitted by their anuran host. Overall, non‐acoustic cues such as host body temperature and carbon dioxide are not important in long‐distance host location by frog‐biting midges.     

Effects of permethrin at different temperatures on pyrethroid-resistant and susceptible strains of Anopheles

The influence of temperature (16, 22, 28, 37 degrees C) on effects of permethrin was investigated for susceptible and pyrethroid-resistant strains of the mosquitoes Anopheles gambiae and An. stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae). Young unfed female adult mosquitoes were exposed to 0.25% permethrin test papers or to polyester netting treated with permethrin 500mg a.i./m2. The time to 50% knockdown (KT50) declined as temperature increased, i.e. there was a positive temperature coefficient of this effect of the pyrethroid. Resistance ratios (comparing KT50 values) between resistant and susceptible An. stephensi ranged between 2.5 and 4.4 at the different temperatures. Comparative tests of pyrethroid tolerance of different strains would be valid over the 22-28 degrees C range but, when using a discriminating dose to detect resistance, more precise temperature control is desirable. Mortality 24h after exposure to 0.25% permethrin of both susceptible and resistant strains of An. stephensi showed a negative correlation with temperature between 16 and 22 degrees C and a positive correlation at higher temperatures. In An. gambiae, however, the correlation was positive over the whole range. Irritancy of permethrin-treated netting to Anopheles females (measured as time lapse until first flight take-off, and the number of take-offs during 7.5 min exposure) was positively correlated with temperature in all four strains and was much greater for the susceptible than the resistant strains.     

Flavivirus isolations from mosquitoes collected from Saibai Island in the Torres Strait, Australia, during an incursion of Japanese encephalitis virus

Adult mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) were collected in January and February 2000 from Saibai Island in the Torres Strait of northern Australia, and processed for arbovirus isolation during a period of Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus activity on nearby Badu Island. A total of 84 210 mosquitoes were processed for virus isolation, yielding six flavivirus isolates. Viruses obtained were single isolates of JE and Kokobera (KOK) and four of Kunjin (KUN). All virus isolates were from members of the Culex sitiens Weidemann subgroup, which comprised 53.1% of mosquitoes processed. Nucleotide sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the pre-membrane region of the genome of JE isolate TS5313 indicated that it was closely related to other isolates from a sentinel pig and a pool of Cx. gelidus Theobald from Badu Island during the same period. Also molecular analyses of part of the envelope gene of KUN virus isolates showed that they were closely related to other KUN virus strains from Cape York Peninsula. The results indicate that flaviviruses are dynamic in the area, and suggest patterns of movement south from New Guinea and north from the Australian mainland.     

Genetic population structure and introgression in Anopheles dirus mosquitoes in South-east Asia

Genetic structure and species relationships were studied in three closely related mosquito species, Anopheles dirus A, C and D in Thailand using 11 microsatellite loci and compared with previous mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) data on the same populations. All three species were well differentiated from each other at the microsatellite loci. Given the almost complete absence of mtDNA differentiation between An. dirus A and D, this endorses the previous suggestion of mtDNA introgression between these species. The high degree of differentiation between the northern and southern population of An. dirus C (RST = 0.401), in agreement with mtDNA data, is suggestive of incipient species. The lack of genetic structure indicated by microsatellites in four populations of An. dirus A across northern Thailand also concurs with mtDNA data. However, in An. dirus D a limited but significant level of structure was detected by microsatellites over ~400 km in northern Thailand, whereas the mtDNA detected no population differentiation over a much larger area (>1200 km). There is prior evidence for population expansion in the mtDNA. If this is due to a selective sweep originating in An. dirus D, the microsatellite data may indicate greater barriers to gene flow within An. dirus D than in species A. Alternatively, there may have been historical introgression of mtDNA and subsequent demographic expansion which occurred first in An. dirus D so enabling it to accumulate some population differentiation. In the latter case the lack of migration-drift equilibrium precludes the inference of absolute or relative values of gene flow in An. dirus A and D.