紫玉兰‘红元宝'花芽分化阶段基因定量分析的内参基因筛选

为筛选紫玉兰‘红元宝’(Magnolia liliflora‘Hongyuanbao’)二次花芽分化阶段稳定表达的内参基因,该研究以‘红元宝’不同花芽分化时期的花芽和叶为材料,基于转录组数据,筛选出8个候选内参基因,即泛素酶基因(UBC)、肌动蛋白(ACT)、微管蛋白β链(β-TUB)、微管蛋白β-5链(β-TUB5)、微管蛋白α-3链(α-TUB3)、磷酸烯醇丙酮酸羧化酶(PEPC)、酰基载体蛋白2(ACP2)、酰基载体蛋白3(ACP3)。运用Primer Premier 5设计引物,简单克隆和熔解曲线验证引物特异性;利用qRT-PCR技术检测各个候选内参基因的表达情况,结合GeNorm、NormFinder、BestKeeper软件和RefFinder在线工具综合评估其表达稳定性,并通过目的基因TFL1的表达分析验证其可靠性。结果表明:(1)8个候选内参基因条带位置正确,熔解曲线呈单一峰,说明引物特异性良好。(2)β-TUB、β-TUB5和α-TUB3是‘红元宝’不同花芽分化时期较为稳定的内参基因,而UBC和ACT为稳定性最低的内参基因。(3)β-TUB5、α-TUB3、β-TUB及其组合的相对表达量趋于一致,而ACT和UBC并未对目的基因的表达量进行有效的标准化。因此,β-TUB、β-TUB5和α-TUB3可作为‘红元宝’二次花芽分化研究中稳定表达的内参基因。该研究结果将为木兰属植物二次成花分子调控机制研究提供依据。     

Process of Making Three-dimensional Microstructures using Vaporization of a Sacrificial Component

Vascular structures in natural systems are able to provide high mass transport through high surface areas and optimized structure. Few synthetic material fabrication techniques are able to mimic the complexity of these structures while maintaining scalability. The Vaporization of a Sacrificial Component (VaSC) process is able to do so. This process uses sacrificial fibers as a template to form hollow, cylindrical microchannels embedded within a matrix. Tin (II) oxalate (SnOx) is embedded within poly(lactic) acid (PLA) fibers which facilitates the use of this process. The SnOx catalyzes the depolymerization of the PLA fibers at lower temperatures. The lactic acid monomers are gaseous at these temperatures and can be removed from the embedded matrix at temperatures that do not damage the matrix. Here we show a method for aligning these fibers using micromachined plates and a tensioning device to create complex patterns of three-dimensionally arrayed microchannels. The process allows the exploration of virtually any arrangement of fiber topologies and structures.     

Cold-induced phase separation for the simple and reliable extraction of sex hormones for subsequent LC-MS/MS analysis

Sex hormones, including androgens, estrogens, and progestogens, are important biomarkers for various diseases. Quantification of sex hormones is typically conducted by LC-MS/MS. At present, most methods require liquid-liquid extraction or solid phase extraction for sample preparation. However, these pretreatments are prone to compromise LC-MS/MS throughput. To improve on the current standard practices, we investigated cold-induced phase separation for sex hormone extraction. After protein precipitation with acetonitrile and adjusting the solution constitution with water, samples were stored at ?30°C for 10 min to generate two distinct phases: an acetonitrile-rich layer on top of a water-rich layer. During this process, the hydrophobic sex hormones spontaneously separate into the upper layer. This simple and reliable cold-induced phase separation-based LC-MS/MS methodology was used here to simultaneously detect estrone, estradiol, estriol, testosterone, androstenedione, dehydroepiandrosterone, progesterone, and 17-hydroxyprogesterone in serum. Validation of this method indicated satisfactory performance, including acceptable linearity, accuracy, precision, and tractability. Compared with the mainstream liquid-liquid extraction-based method, this new method exhibits significant progress in throughput, which shortens the time cost of sample preparation from 90 to 40 min. We propose that this method can be an excellent alternative for sex hormone analysis in routine clinical laboratories.     

Identifying suitable reference genes for developing and injured mouse CNS tissues

Accurate quantification of gene expression is fundamental for understanding the molecular, genetic and functional bases of tissue development and diseases. Quantitative real‐time PCR (qPCR) is now the most widely used method of quantifying gene expression due to its simplicity, specificity, sensitivity, and wide quantification range. The use of appropriate reference genes to ensure accurate normalization is crucial for the correct quantification of gene expression from the early development, maturation, aging to injury processes in the central nervous system (CNS). In this study, we have determined the expression profiles of 12 candidate housekeeping genes (ACTB, CYC1, HMBS, GAPDH, HPRT1, RPL13A, YWHAZ, PPIA, RPLP0, TFRC, GUS, and 18S rRNA) in developing mouse brain and spinal cord. Throughout development, there was a significant degree of fluctuations in their expression levels, indicating the importance and complexity of finding appropriate reference genes. Three software including BestKeeper, geNorm and NormFinder were used to evaluate the stability of potential reference genes. GUS was the most stable gene and GUS/YWHAZ were the most stable reference gene pair across different developmental stages in different CNS regions, whereas HPRT1 and GAPDH were the most variable genes and thus inappropriate to use as reference genes. Therefore, our results identified GUS and YWHAZ as the best combination of two reference genes for expression data normalization in CNS developmental studies. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 78: 39–50, 2018     

Hybrid solar cells

Historically, conventional solar cells were built from inorganic materials such as silicon. Although the efficiency of such conventional solar cells is high, very expensive materials and energy intensive processing techniques are required.Hybrid and photoelectrochemical (dye sensitized) solar cells have been the cheap alternatives for conventional silicon solar cells. A hybrid solar cell consists of a combination of both organic and inorganic materials therefore, combines the unique properties of inorganic semiconductors with the film forming properties of the conjugated polymers. Organic materials are inexpensive, easily processable and their functionality can be tailored by molecular design and chemical synthesis. On the other hand, inorganic semiconductors can be manufactured as nanoparticles and inorganic semiconductor nanoparticles offer the advantage of having high absorption coefficients and size tunability. By varying the size of the nanoparticles the bandgap can be tuned therefore the absorption range can be tailored.In this short review, we will focus on the concepts of organic/inorganic “hybrid” solar cells.     

油菜蜂花粉酶法破壁研究

采用酶法技术,对青藏高原产油菜蜂花粉进行破壁,工艺简单,条件温和,易于操作,适合工业化生产,破壁率高于90％以上。破壁花粉有利于活性物质的释放和人体的吸收。     

Di‐Spiro‐Based Hole‐Transporting Materials for Highly Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Hole‐transporting materials (HTMs) are essential for enabling highly efficient perovskite solar cells (PVSCs) to extract and transport the hole carriers. Among numerous HTMs that are studied so far, the single‐spiro‐based compounds are the most frequently used HTMs for achieving highly efficient PVSCs. In fact, all the new spiro‐based HTMs reported so far that render PVSCs over 20% are based on spiro[fluorene‐9,9′‐xanthene] or spiro [cyclopenta [2,1‐b:3,4b′]dithiophene‐4,9′‐fluorene] cores; therefore, there is a need to diversify the design of their structures for further improving their function and performance. In addition, the fundamental understanding of structure–performance relationships for the spiro‐based HTMs is still lagging, for example, how molecular configuration, spiro numbers, and heteroatoms in spiro‐rings impact the efficacy of HTMs. To address these needs, two novel H‐shaped HTMs, G1 and G2 based on the di‐spiro‐rings as the cores are designed and synthesized. The combined good film‐forming properties, better interactions with perovskite, slightly deeper highest occupied molecular orbital, higher mobility and conductivity, as well as more efficient charge transfer for G2 help devices reach a very impressive power conversion efficiency of 20.2% and good stability. This is the first report of demonstrating the feasibility of using di‐spiro‐based HTMs for highly efficient PVSCs.