Unraveling Entropic Rate Acceleration Induced by Solvent Dynamics in Membrane Enzymes

Enzyme catalysis evolved in an aqueous environment. The influence of solvent dynamics on catalysis is, however, currently poorly understood and usually neglected. The study of water dynamics in enzymes and the associated thermodynamical consequences is highly complex and has involved computer simulations, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments, and calorimetry. Water tunnels that connect the active site with the surrounding solvent are key to solvent displacement and dynamics. The protocol herein allows for the engineering of these motifs for water transport, which affects specificity, activity and thermodynamics. By providing a biophysical framework founded on theory and experiments, the method presented herein can be used by researchers without previous expertise in computer modeling or biophysical chemistry. The method will advance our understanding of enzyme catalysis on the molecular level by measuring the enthalpic and entropic changes associated with catalysis by enzyme variants with obstructed water tunnels. The protocol can be used for the study of membrane-bound enzymes and other complex systems. This will enhance our understanding of the importance of solvent reorganization in catalysis as well as provide new catalytic strategies in protein design and engineering.     

脱水导致的胞内溶质变化与植物耐干性的获得

植物耐干性是指许多植物个体和部分植物种子能在含水量极低的条件下存活,在回水的过程中迅速启动修复机制,细胞经重新水合修复所受损伤的能力。在脱水过程中,植物会合成和积累某些小分子物质、碳水化合物和特殊的蛋白质;在极度脱水状态下,多组分参与的玻璃化的形成和两性物质的重新分配、耐干性植物中特有的抗氧化机制都是植物获得耐干性的重要条件。复苏植物(resurrection plant)和部分被子植物种子是当前研究植物耐干性的模式材料。     

针阔混交林内白颈长尾雉栖息地利用的影响因子研究

采用无线电遥测和样方法对针阔混交林内白颈长尾雉栖息地利用的影响因子进行了定量研究。结果显示：（１）白颈长尾雉对其栖息地的利用有较强的选择性；（２）白颈长尾雉主要在阳坡春、秋、科三季活动对坡度较平缓，夏季略陡。该雉栖息地利用受水源距离的影响；（３）各种灌枯木、 草本层和地被层因子在白颈长尾雉栖息吉食物条件和隐蔽条件方面发挥重要作用。大叶白纸扇、油茶、山缰、野枇杷、毛冬青、格药柃、乌饭、蔷薇科植物、苔     

Establishing the role of detoxifying enzymes in field‐evolved resistance to various insecticides in the brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens) in South India

The brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens (Stål), is one of the major pests of rice throughout Asia. Extensive use of insecticides for suppressing N. lugens has resulted in the development of insecticide resistance leading to frequent control failures in the field. The aim of the present study was to evaluate resistance in the field populations of N. lugens from major rice growing states of South India to various insecticides. We also determined the activity of detoxifying enzymes (esterases [ESTs], glutathione S‐transferases [GSTs], and mixed‐function oxidases [MFOs]). Moderate levels of resistance were detected in the field populations to acephate, thiamethoxam and buprofezin (resistance factors 1.05–20.92 fold, 4.52–14.99 fold, and 1.00–18.09 fold, respectively) as compared with susceptible strain while there were low levels of resistance to imidacloprid (resistance factor 1.23–6.70 fold) and complete sensitivity to etofenoprox (resistance factor 1.05–1.66 fold). EST activities in the field populations were 1.06 to 3.09 times higher than the susceptible strain while for GST and MFO the ratios varied from 1.29 to 3.41 and 1.03 to 1.76, respectively. The EST activity was found to be correlated to acephate resistance (r = 0.999, P ≥ 0.001). The high selection pressure of organophosphate, neonicotinoid, and insect growth regulator (IGR) in the field is likely to be contributing for resistance in BPH to multiple insecticides, leading to control failures. The results obtained will be beneficial to IPM recommendations for the use of effective insecticides against BPH.     

Control of cloned gene expression by promoter inversion in vivo: construction of the heat-pulse-activated att-nutL-p-att-N module

We have constructed a prototype of gene-expression plasmids with three novel properties: its "OFF phase" is absolute in all common hosts because the expression promoter is facing away from the studied gene and is blocked by a strong terminator; the "ON phase" is attained by the rapid and efficient inversion of the promoter; only a short heat pulse or exposure to other inducing agents is required to initiate this two-stage process. In the first stage, synthesis of the phage lambda Int protein is induced by the transient derepression of the properly engineered lambda xis- cIts857 prophage. In the immediately following second stage, Int causes inversion of a promoter cloned between the inverted ----P'OP phage att site and the normally oriented ----delta PO delta P' pseudo-bacterial att site. The inverted promoter can now control the expression of the studied gene and also of the lambda N gene cloned in tandem. The N product, in conjunction with the nutL site placed downstream of the promoter, permits efficient antitermination of any terminators present in the att sites, in the plasmid or in the cloned DNA, making this system efficient and of practical value. Employing the promoter-inverting plasmid, it was possible to obtain rapid onset and a high level of galactokinase synthesis from the cloned galK gene. Only a transient, 10-min induction at 42 degrees C was employed, permitting protein synthesis at 30 degrees C, which might be of importance for thermosensitive products. Furthermore, the entire promoter-inversion module can be transferred to any plasmid as a 1.3-kb AvaI-ClaI fragment (see Fig. 1).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

人胚胎干细胞和分化细胞差别基因的筛选

人类胚胎干细胞(human embryonic stem cell,hESC)在增殖过程中如何保持未分化状态是干细胞生物学的核心问题之一,已有的LIF通路、Oct-4因子及Nanog基因的作用还不能对这一问题做出全面的解释。为进一步了解维持hESC未分化状态的机制,采用自行建立培养的hESC及分化的hESC细胞克隆(differentiated hESC,dhESC),应用抑制消减杂交(Suppression Subtractive Hybridization,SSH)结合反向cDNA斑点杂交技术,筛选出在hESC高表达、在dhESC中低表达或不表达的表达序列标签(Expressed Sequence Tag,EST)共105个。通过与GenBank比较,显示其中76个EST代表61个已知基因,18个EST代表15个假想基因,另有11个属于未知EST。选取其中8个克隆进行半定量RT-PCR分析,证实其中7个克隆在hESC中高表达,在dhESC中低表达或不表达。结果表明,hESC分化前后涉及多个基因的差异表达,对这些在hESC中高表达、在dhESC中低表达或不表达基因的进一步功能研究为阐明维持hESC未分化状态的机制提供了基础。     

Can we measure ecological sustainability? Landscape pattern as an indicator for naturalness and land use intensity at regional,national and European level

European landscapes have been shaped over the centuries by processes related to human land use, which are reflected in regionally distinct landscape patterns. Since landscape pattern has been linked to biodiversity and other ecological values of the landscapes, this paper explores landscape pattern as a tool for ecological sustainability assessments at the regional (Austrian Cultural Landscapes), national (Austria) and European (European Union + Norway, Switzerland) level with focus on agricultural landscapes. A set of landscape metrics served as a basis to assess naturalness and geometrisation of Austrian and European landscapes as a proxy for their sustainability. To achieve an accurate spatially explicit assessment, we applied a spatial reference framework consisting in units that are homogeneous in biophysical and socio-economic contexts, adapted the regional approach for its application at European level, and developed relative sustainability thresholds for the landscape metrics. The analyses revealed that several landscape metrics, particularly the “Number of Shape Characterising Points” showed a high correlation with the degree of naturalness. The sustainability map of Austria based on an ordinal regression model revealed well-known problem regions of ecological sustainability. At the European level, the relative deviation from the average pattern showed clearly the simplification processes in the landscapes. However, a better spatial resolution of land cover data would add to the refinement of pattern analysis in regions and therefore the assessment of sustainability. We recommend the combination of information of different scales for the formulation and implementation of sustainability policies.     

非稳态酶活化动力学的布尔函数图论分析

以非稳态酶动力学的布尔函数图形方法研究非稳态酶活化动力学问题,推导出此类反应的非稳态酶动力学方程,并对此动力学方程进行了讨论,分析了酶活化反应体系的非稳态酶动力学过程．     

基于功能磁共振（fMRI）低频振幅算法的逻辑计算任务的脑活动研究

利用功能磁共振成像（functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging,fMRI）进行脑功能研究是目前的一个热点。现以逻辑计算为认知任务,利用fMRI进行数据采集。采用低频振荡振幅（amplitude of low frequency fluctuation,ALFF）算法分别对14例正常人的计算和无任务静息状态的功能磁共振数据进行处理,并做对比分析。观察振幅增强或减弱情况,发现计算任务下相关激活脑区存在低频振荡,逻辑认知的负载也导致了默认（default mode）网络改变;同时针对相关的改变做出了初步探索。     

基底外侧杏仁核对睡眠-觉醒的调节作用

采用多道睡眠描记方法,观察了基底外侧杏仁核在睡眠－觉醒调节中的作用。结果发现,电损毁双侧ＢＬＮ引起慢波睡眠和快波睡眠增加,觉醒减少;在双侧ＢＬＮ内注射选择性损毁神经元胸体剂量的红藻氨酸引起双相效应,注射ＫＡ后第１天出现失眠,自第３天开始,ＳＷＳ增多,Ｗ减少,但ＰＳ无显著变化。