拆分获得(S)-酮基布洛芬脂肪酶基因在枯草芽孢杆菌中的克隆与表达

【目的】筛选具有不对称拆分消旋酮基布洛芬氯乙酯能力的脂肪酶基因,构建其表达分泌型工程菌,并进一步提高该脂肪酶的立体选择性。【方法】以自筛选出的一株具有不对称拆分消旋酮基布洛芬氯乙酯能力的菌株NK13为材料,通过构建其基因组文库,筛选具有不对称拆分消旋酮基布洛芬氯乙酯能力的脂肪酶基因。通过构建该脂肪酶基因的分泌型诱导表达载体pHY300-plk-sacR-gene,将其转入枯草芽孢杆菌WB600,获得基因重组菌WB600(pHY300-plk-sacR-gene)。用SDS-PAGE检测其表达和转化情况,采用非变性聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳的方法纯化脂肪酶;并利用TLC和HPLC检测该酶的立体选择专一性。【结果】得到了具有专一性拆分获得(S)-酮基布洛芬能力、长度为633bp的脂肪酶基因(GenBank登录号为:EU381317)。该脂肪酶在枯草芽孢杆菌WB600中得到了分泌表达。TLC和HPLC检测结果显示,纯化的脂肪酶对底物转化40h时转化率为30%,生成(S)-酮基布洛芬的e.e.%值最高,达60.02%,与未加Tween-80的枯草芽孢杆菌转化子体系相同。而在含Tween-80的环境下,枯草芽孢杆菌表达重组菌对底物转化36h时转化率约为45%,生成(S)-酮基布洛芬的e.e.%值最高,达93.64%,是野生菌NK13的16倍。【结论】从NK13号菌株中筛选得到的新的脂肪酶具有很高的不对称拆分获得(S)-酮基布洛芬的能力,实现了NK13菌中633bp脂肪酶基因在枯草芽孢杆菌中的分泌表达,研究证明Tween-80能提高该脂肪酶的拆分专一性。     

Physical and chemical properties of primary defences in Tenebrio molitor

Prevention and reaction are the foundation for any defence system. In insects, the primary defences against pathogens and parasites limit invasion; the secondary ones (e.g. immune system) act when the cuticle and other primary defences fail. Because investment in both aspects of defence may be costly, they should be regulated in a plastic or variable way in accordance with the risk of infection. The mealworm beetle Tenebrio molitor L. changes cuticle colour and its resistance to fungal infection when subject to high population density, although such resistance is a result of the primary (cuticle) defences rather than the secondary (immunological) ones. The present study tests the hypothesis that the physical and chemical properties of the primary defences in T. molitor change with cuticular darkness. Beetles expressing black phenotypes (or with darker cuticle) have a thicker cuticle, with four well organized layers (epi‐, exo‐, endocuticle and formation zone) and more melanin than tan beetles. The cuticle properties investigated in the present study are likely to be the underlying mechanisms of pathogen resistance in black beetles, including the content of carbonylated proteins, which in black beetles was almost half that of tan beetles after exposure to ultraviolet radiation. It is proposed that, in polyphenic insects (such as mealworm beetles), primary and secondary defences are regulated pleiotropically, with the genes responsible for the expression of one defence having a positive effect on others, whereas, in polymorphic insects, there is no such link and so investment in one defence may impair others.     

重组阳离子抗肿瘤肽AIK的原核表达、纯化及活性测定

利用Gateway克隆技术构建重组抗瘤肽AIK的原核表达体系,建立表达及纯化重组AIK的最优条件,为深入研究和利用AIK奠定基础。首先,设计含AttB重组位点的引物,通过重叠PCR技术扩增出Att B-TEV-FLAG-AIK序列,利用BP重组反应将目的序列TEV-FLAG-AIK克隆到供体载体pDONR223中,构建入门载体,再通过LR重组反应,将目的序列转移到目的载体pDEST15中,构建GST-AIK融合蛋白原核表达质粒。随后,在BL21(DE3)工程菌中优化诱导融合蛋白表达的条件。以谷胱甘肽磁珠纯化GST-AIK融合蛋白,再以rTEV酶切除GST,获得FLAG-AIK重组蛋白。最后以MTS法检测FLAG-AIK对白血病细胞HL-60的细胞毒性。菌液PCR验证和测序分析表明成功构建了重组抗瘤肽AIK的入门质粒和原核表达质粒。在BL21(DE3)工程菌中实现了GST-AIK融合蛋白的高效可溶性表达。并测得在37℃下以0.1 mmol/L IPTG诱导工程菌(OD600=1.0)4 h,重组蛋白表达量占菌体总蛋白的30%以上。经GST亲和层析、rTEV酶切除GST标签及二次GST亲和层析获得纯度高于95%的FLAG-AIK蛋白。MTS法测得所制备的FLAG-AIK蛋白抑瘤活性与化学合成的AIK相当。总之,本课题应用Gateway克隆系统成功构建了抗瘤肽AIK的原核表达质粒,实现了GST-AIK融合蛋白的高效可溶性表达,经亲和层析获得了有生物活性的重组AIK多肽,为后续深入研究和大规模制备奠定了基础。     

Therapeutic angiogenesis for revascularization in peripheral artery disease

Therapeutic angiogenesis for peripheral artery disease (PAD), achieved by gene and cell therapy, has recently raised a great deal of hope for patients who cannot undergo standard revascularizing treatment. Although pre-clinical studies gave very promising data, still clinical trials of gene therapy have not provided satisfactory results. On the other hand, cell therapy approach, despite several limitations, demonstrated more beneficial effects but initial clinical studies must be constantly validated by larger randomized, multi-center, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials. This review focuses on previous and recent gene and cell therapy studies for limb ischemia, including both experimental and clinical research, and summarizes some important papers published in this field. Moreover, it provides a short comment on combined gene and cell therapy approach on the example of heme oxygenase-1 overexpressing cells with therapeutic properties.     

Defense against Pieris rapae in cabbage plants induced by Bemisia tabaci biotype B

Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) and Pieris rapae L. (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) are serious pests of vegetables, that can occur simultaneously on a single cabbage plant [Brassica oleracea var. capitata L. (Brassicaceae)]. We determined whether pre‐feeding or infestation by B. tabaci on cabbage could induce physiological and biochemical responses of the plant against P. rapae. Developmental time, length, and weight of immature P. rapae, and defense‐related plant compounds (SOD, superoxide dismutase; POD, peroxidase; CAT, catalase; APX, ascorbate peroxidase) were measured. Development of P. rapae larvae was 21% slower on B. tabaci‐pre‐infested plants than on plants without B. tabaci infestation. When feeding on B. tabaci‐pre‐infested plants, 22% of P. rapae larvae pupated as compared with 83% on B. tabaci‐free plants. Weights of P. rapae from first to fourth instars that fed on B. tabaci‐pre‐infested plants were also reduced, whereas those of fifth instars and pupae were not. Similarly, body length of P. rapae from first to fourth instars was affected by B. tabaci pre‐infestation, whereas that of the fifth instars was not. Peroxidase and APX activities of the B. tabaci‐pre‐infested plants increased more than SOD and CAT. Peroxidase and SOD activities of B. tabaci and P. rapae co‐infested plants increased as compared with those of P. rapae‐infested plants; however, CAT and APX activities were not different between B. tabaci‐ and P. rapae‐infested plants. These results showed that B. tabaci infestation had a negative effect on P. rapae when they occurred simultaneously on the same host plant. The implications of the induced plant changes on the herbivore are discussed.     

An inducible constitutive expression system in Bombyx mori mediated by phiC31 integrase

Inducible gene-expression systems play important roles in gene functional assays in the post-genome era. Streptomyces phage-derived phiC31 integrase, which mediates an irreversible site-specific cassette exchange between the phage attachment site (attP) and the bacterial attachment site (attB), provides a promising option for the construction of a controllable gene-expression system. Here, we report a phiC31 integrase-mediated promoter flip system (FLIP) for the inducible expression of target genes in silkworm (Bombyx mori). First, we constructed a FLIP reporter system, in which a BmAct4 promoter with enhanced translational efficiency was flanked by the attB and attP sites in a head-to-head orientation and further linked in a reverse orientation to a DsRed reporter gene. The coexpression of a C-terminal modified phiC31-NLS integrase carrying a simian virus 40 (SV40) nuclear localization signal (NLS) effectively flipped the BmAct4 promoter through an attB/attP exchange, thereby activating the downstream expression of DsRed in a silkworm embryo-derived cell line, BmE. Subsequently, the FLIP system, together with a system continuously expressing the phiC31-NLS integrase, was used to construct binary transgenic silkworm lines. Hybridization between FLIP and phiC31-NLS transgenic silkworm lines resulted in the successful flipping of the BmAct4 promoter, with an approximately 39% heritable transformation efficiency in silkworm offspring, leading to the constitutive and high-level expression of DsRed in silkworms, which accounted for approximately 0.81% of the silkworm pupal weight. Our successful development of the FLIP system offers an effective alternative for manipulating gene expression in silkworms and other lepidopteran species.     

Elevational gradients in plant defences and insect herbivory: recent advances in the field and prospects for future research

Classic research on elevational gradients in plant–herbivore interactions holds that insect herbivore pressure is stronger under warmer, less seasonal climates characteristic of low elevations, and that this in turn selects for increased defence in low‐ (relative to high‐) elevation plants. However, recent work has questioned this paradigm, arguing that it overly simplifies the ecological complexity in which plant–insect herbivore interactions are embedded along elevational gradients. Numerous biotic and abiotic factors vary with elevation, and their simultaneous influences are the focus of current work on elevational gradients in insect herbivory and plant defences. The present review 1) synthesizes current knowledge on elevational gradients in plant–insect herbivore interactions; 2) critically analyses research gaps and highlights recent advances that contribute to filling these gaps; and 3) outlines new research opportunities to uncover underlying mechanisms and build towards a unified theory on elevational gradients. We conclude that the next generation of studies should embrace community complexity – including multi‐trophic dynamics and the multivariate nature of plant defence – and to do so by combining observational data, manipulative experiments and emerging analytical tools.     

Long‐term coevolution between avian brood parasites and their hosts

Coevolutionary theory predicts that the most common long‐term outcome of the relationships between brood parasites and their hosts should be coevolutionary cycles based on a dynamic change selecting the currently least‐defended host species, given that when well‐defended hosts are abandoned, hosts will be selected to decrease their defences as these are usually assumed to be costly. This is assumed to be the case also in brood parasite‐host systems. Here I examine the frequency of the three potential long‐term outcomes of brood parasite–host coevolution (coevolutionary cycles, lack of rejection, and successful resistance) in 182 host species. The results of simple exploratory comparisons show that coevolutionary cycles are very scarce while the lack of rejection and successful resistance, which are considered evolutionary enigmas, are much more frequent. I discuss these results considering (i) the importance of different host defences at all stages of the breeding cycle, (ii) the role of phenotypic plasticity in long‐term coevolution, and (iii) the evolutionary history of host selection. I suggest that in purely antagonistic coevolutionary interactions, such as those involving brood parasites and their hosts, that although cycles will exist during an intermediate phase of the interactions, the arms race will end with the extinction of the host or with the host acquiring successful resistance. As evolutionary time passes, this resistance will force brood parasites to use previously less suitable host species. Furthermore, I present a model that represents the long‐term trajectories and outcomes of coevolutionary interactions between brood parasites and their hosts with respect to the evolution of egg‐rejection defence. This model suggests that as an increasing number of species acquire successful resistance, other unparasitized host species become more profitable and their parasitism rate and the costs imposed by brood parasitism at the population level will increase, selecting for the evolution of host defences. This means that although acceptance is adaptive when the parasitism rate and the costs of parasitism are very low, this cannot be considered to represent an evolutionary equilibrium, as conventional theory has done to date, because it is not stable.