iDNA-Methyl: Identifying DNA methylation sites via pseudo trinucleotide composition

Predominantly occurring on cytosine, DNA methylation is a process by which cells can modify their DNAs to change the expression of gene products. It plays very important roles in life development but also in forming nearly all types of cancer. Therefore, knowledge of DNA methylation sites is significant for both basic research and drug development. Given an uncharacterized DNA sequence containing many cytosine residues, which one can be methylated and which one cannot? With the avalanche of DNA sequences generated during the postgenomic age, it is highly desired to develop computational methods for accurately identifying the methylation sites in DNA. Using the trinucleotide composition, pseudo amino acid components, and a dataset-optimizing technique, we have developed a new predictor called “iDNA-Methyl” that has achieved remarkably higher success rates in identifying the DNA methylation sites than the existing predictors. A user-friendly web-server for the new predictor has been established at http://www.jci-bioinfo.cn/iDNA-Methyl, where users can easily get their desired results. We anticipate that the web-server predictor will become a very useful high-throughput tool for basic research and drug development and that the novel approach and technique can also be used to investigate many other DNA-related problems and genome analysis.     

SO_2对胸主动脉血管平滑肌细胞钾离子通道的影响

为了探讨二氧化硫(SO2)引起大鼠血管平滑肌的降压机制,采用急性酶分离法分离大鼠单个血管平滑肌细胞,运用全细胞膜片钳技术记录平滑肌细胞外向钾电流(IKv),观察SO2及其衍生物对平滑肌细胞膜钾电流的作用,从离子通道角度研究SO2对血压的影响。结果发现:SO2衍生物可使外向IKv显著增大,10μmol/L SO2衍生物可使电流-电压曲线(I-V曲线)显著上移,即增大IKv,且呈一定的电压依赖性,并且,SO2衍生物可使IKv增大呈现出剂量-效应关系。当使用5 mmol/L 4-氨基吡啶(4-AP)抑制IKv后,加入10μmol/L SO2衍生物,IKv有一定程度增加。TEA能抑制SO2衍生物对IKv的增大效应。10μmol/L SO2衍生物可使IKv的激活曲线显著向超极化方向移动,但并不影响其斜率因子。说明SO2衍生物作用于血管平滑肌细胞,可引起外向钾电流幅度增大,使钾电流提前激活,这是SO2及其衍生物降压的作用机制之一;TEA、4-AP对SO2衍生物引起的血管平滑肌细胞钾电流的增大具有拮抗作用。     

并行采集技术在老年人肝脏MR检查中的应用价值

目的探讨并行采集PAT技术（Parallel acquisition technique）对改善老年人肝脏磁共振扫描中出现的运动伪影的应用价值。方法对63例常规肝脏MRI检查出现呼吸运动伪影的老年患者（其中TrueFisp序列未出现明显伪影）,行iPAT技术扫描（TrueFisp冠状位、T1 Flash轴位）,对比常规序列扫描并评价iPAT技术对肝脏呼吸运动伪影消除的作用。三位磁共振专家对所得两组图像质量进行独立观察及评价,并进行对比分析。结果常规序列磁共振扫描63例肝脏呼吸运动伪影,其中Ⅰ、Ⅱ、Ⅲ和Ⅳ分别为0、15、33和15例,Ⅲ级以上影响诊断的病例共48例,占76%。采用iPAT技术扫描后,Ⅰ、Ⅱ、Ⅲ和Ⅳ分别为53、5、3和2例,Ⅲ级以下符合诊断要求的病例共58例,占92.1%,两者比较有显著差异（P〈0.05）。结论 iPAT技术可以明显缩短扫描的时间,在克服常规肝脏扫描中产生的呼吸运动伪影有明显的作用,可广泛应用于老年人肝脏常规检查产生的呼吸运动伪影校正中。     

多基因表达系统研究进展

细胞中大多数蛋白质以亚基形式与其他蛋白装配成蛋白复合体而发挥功能.大分子蛋白复合物的结构研究和功能分析在后基因组时代成为热点,如何高效地获得多蛋白复合物是研究其功能和结构的前提.利用基因工程技术实现多个蛋白亚基在同一宿主细胞内共表达并装配成复合体是获得多蛋白复合物的有效手段.多基因表达系统在基础和应用研究中正起到越来越...     

Principles of Rodent Surgery for the New Surgeon

For both scientific and animal welfare reasons, training in basic surgical concepts and techniques should be undertaken before ever seeking to perform surgery on a rodent. Students, post-doctoral scholars, and others interested in performing surgery on rodents as part of a research protocol may not have had formal surgical training as part of their required coursework. Surgery itself is a technical skill, and one that will improve with practice. The principles of aseptic technique, however, often remain unexplained or untaught. For most new surgeons, this vital information is presented in piecemeal fashion or learned on the job, neither of which is ideal. It may also make learning how to perform a particular surgery difficult, as the new surgeon is learning both a surgical technique and the principles of asepsis at the same time. This article summarizes and makes recommendations for basic surgical skills and techniques necessary for successful rodent surgery. This article is designed to supplement hands-on training by the user''s institution.     

White Ibis integument color during the breeding season

ABSTRACT.   Many birds undergo bare part color changes during the breeding season. Most investigators have focused on color as a signal of individual quality. An alternative, but not exclusive, function of bare part color may be signaling readiness to breed, especially in colonial, asynchronous breeders. White Ibises ( Eudocimus albus ) are colonial waterbirds that show vivid bare part colors on their bills and legs during reproduction. We quantified bill and leg colors to describe color changes and their possible relationship to reproductive status during the breeding season of White Ibises in the Florida Everglades from 1998 to 2001. We also examined the correlation between bare part colors and circulating concentrations of sex steroids to understand the factors that regulate bare part colors. During the display stage, male and female ibises developed dark pink bills and scarlet legs. As the breeding season progressed, bills and legs faded and developed a muted pink hue. The bare part colors of female ibises were correlated with testosterone concentrations, but those of male ibises were not correlated with any hormones. A discriminant function analysis based on principal component scores (representing variation in saturation and hue) and the amount of black on the bill successfully classified ibis reproductive stage 94% of the time. The use of bare part colors to determine reproductive status may be useful for studying reproduction in colonially nesting birds, where access to breeding sites can be difficult and potential for researcher disturbance is high.     

Seasonal CO<Subscript>2</Subscript>-exchange variations of temperate semi-desert grassland in Hungary

CO₂ exchange components of a temperate semi-desert sand grassland ecosystem in Hungary were measured 21 times in 2000–2001 using a closed IRGA system. Stand CO₂ uptake and release, soil respiration rate (R _s), and micrometeorological values were determined with two types of closed system chambers to investigate the daily courses of gas exchange. The maximum CO₂ uptake and release were –3.240 and 1.903 mol m^–2 s^–1, respectively, indicating a relatively low carbon sequestration potential. The maximum and the minimum R _s were 1.470 and 0.226 mol(CO₂) m^–2 s^–1, respectively. Water shortage was probably more effective in decreasing photosynthetic rates than R _s, indicating water supply as the primary driving variable for the sink-source relations in this ecosystem type.