肉毒神经毒素受体的研究进展

肉毒神经毒素(botulinumneurotoxin)是世界已知毒性最强的生物毒素,它通过酶切在递质释放过程中起关键作用的SNARE蛋白,抑制神经递质释放,阻断突触传递.综述了有关肉毒受体研究的进展.这些研究表明,肉毒的结合位点有低亲和力的和高亲和力的两种.肉毒的结合过程分两步,它首先与细胞表面的神经节苷脂结合,形成低亲和力的聚合体,然后再与高亲和力的蛋白受体——synaptotagmin结合,形成牢固的三聚体结构,并由内吞进入细胞.这种解释肉毒结合过程的双受体学说得到了越来越多的支持,文中列举和评述了支持该学说的实验资料.     

Solution single-vesicle assay reveals PIP2-mediated sequential actions of synaptotagmin-1 on SNAREs

Synaptotagmin-1 (Syt1) is a major Ca(2+) sensor for synchronous neurotransmitter release, which requires vesicle fusion mediated by SNAREs (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptors). Syt1 utilizes its diverse interactions with target membrane (t-) SNARE, SNAREpin, and phospholipids, to regulate vesicle fusion. To dissect the functions of Syt1, we apply a single-molecule technique, alternating-laser excitation (ALEX), which is capable of sorting out subpopulations of fusion intermediates and measuring their kinetics in solution. The results show that Syt1 undergoes at least three distinct steps prior to lipid mixing. First, without Ca(2+), Syt1 mediates vesicle docking by directly binding to t-SNARE/phosphatidylinositol 4,5-biphosphate (PIP(2)) complex and increases the docking rate by 10(3) times. Second, synaptobrevin-2 binding to t-SNARE displaces Syt1 from SNAREpin. Third, with Ca(2+), Syt1 rebinds to SNAREpin, which again requires PIP(2). Thus without Ca(2+), Syt1 may bring vesicles to the plasma membrane in proximity via binding to t-SNARE/PIP(2) to help SNAREpin formation and then, upon Ca(2+) influx, it may rebind to SNAREpin, which may trigger synchronous fusion. The results show that ALEX is a powerful method to dissect multiple kinetic steps in the vesicle fusion pathway.     

Functional and physical coupling of voltage-sensitive calcium channels with exocytotic proteins: ramifications for the secretion mechanism

The secretion of neurotransmitters is a rapid Ca(2+)-regulated process that brings about vesicle fusion with the plasma membrane. This rapid process (< 100 microseconds) involves multiple proteins located at the plasma and vesicular membranes. Because of their homology to proteins participating in constitutive secretion and protein trafficking, they have been characterized extensively. The sequential events that lead these proteins to vesicle docking and fusion are still unclear. We will review recent studies that demonstrate the operative role played by voltage-sensitive Ca(2+) channels and discuss the relevance for the process of evoked transmitter release. The regulation of Ca(2+) influx by syntaxin, synaptosome-associated protein of 25 kDa (SNAP-25) and synaptotagmin, and the reciprocity of these proteins in controlling the kinetic properties of the channel will be discussed. Calcium channel and synaptic proteins expressed in Xenopus oocytes demonstrate a strong functional interaction, which could be pertinent to the mechanism of secretion. First, the voltage-sensitive Ca(2+) channels are negatively modulated by syntaxin: this inhibition is reversed by synaptotagmin. Second, the modulation of N-type Ca(2+) channel activation kinetics strongly suggests that the vesicle could be docked at the plasma membrane through direct interaction with synaptotagmin. Finally, these interactions provide evidence for the assembly of the voltage-sensitive Ca(2+) channel with syntaxin 1A, SNAP-25 and synaptotagmin into an excitosome complex: a putative fusion complex with a potential role in the final stages of secretion. Studies suggest that cross-talk between the synaptic proteins and the channel in a tightly organized complex may enable a rapid secretory response to an incoming signal such as membrane depolarization.     

The effects of 20-hydroxyecdysone on the differentiationin vitro of cells from the eye imaginal disc fromDrosophila melanogaster

We have examined the effects of the insect ecdysteroid, 20-hydroxyecdysone, on the differentiation of neuronal and non-neuronal elements in the developing adult visual system, usingin vitro methods inDrosophila. We examined the differentiation of early neuronal markers in the presence and absence of 1 μg/ml 20-hydroxyecdysone. Immunoreactivity to 22C10, a marker of an early neuronal antigen, as well as to the photoreceptor-specific antibody 24B10, suggests that differentiation of neuronal and photoreceptor antigens does not require 20-hydroxyecdysone. In eye-discs cultured from animals 5 hours after the white prepupa (P+5), ommochrome pigmentation first appeared after 2 days in 1 μg/ml 20-hydroxyecdysone, but cultures lacked pigmentation without 20-hydroxyecdysone. Our culture conditions failed to support the formation of the second screening pigment, drosopterins, even with 20-hydroxyecdysone. Eye discs from P+5 also formed lenses and interommatidial bristles in culture when 20-hydroxyecdysone was added but not in cultures devoid of the hormone. The differentiation of synaptotagmin and the elongation of extending photoreceptor neurites from eye disc fragments both occur in the absence of 20-hydroxyecdysone in cultures, but adding the hormone increased average neurite length. The threshold for enhanced neurite length was less than 125 ng/ml 20-hydroxyecdysone. Eye-disc cultures also developed immunoreactivity to histamine, the photoreceptor transmitter, from synthesis not re-uptake, in both the presence and in the absence of 20-hydroxyecdysone. These findings suggest that photoreceptor axons may be able to release transmitterin vivo both when they grow into the optic lobe and during the subsequent events in synapse formation.     

Molecular Diversity in Neurosecretion: Reflections on the Hypothalamo-Neurohypophysial System

1. The diversity of molecules involved in various aspects of neurosecretion, such asproprotein processing, axonal transport of large dense core vesicles (LDCVs), and regulated secretion, is discussed in the context of the hypothalamo-neurohypophysial system (HNS).2. Recent studies have uncovered a family of at least seven processing enzymes known as proprotein convertases (PCs) which are involved in proteolytically cleaving protein precursors at paired basic amino acid motifs to yield biologically active peptides. Three of these, PC1(3), 2, and 5, are found in neurons and are involved in producing regulatedsecretory peptide products.3. The axonal transport of LDCVs occurs on microtubule tracks by still unknown mechanisms. There are over 11 distinct kinesin-related molecules that have now beenidentified as possible microtubule motor candidates.4. Calcium channels in the nervous system are known to be derived from at leastfive -subunit and four -subunit genes with multiple alternatively spliced isoforms in each case. These could account, in part, for the varied calcium currents found in the HNS.5. The large number of proteins and isoforms now demonstrated to be involved inregulated secretion are discussed, with a focus on LDCV compositions and the synaptotag-min gene family.     

Interactions between Presynaptic Calcium Channels and Proteins Implicated in Synaptic Vesicle Trafficking and Exocytosis

Monoclonal antibodies were generated by immunizing mice with chick brain synaptic membranes and screening for immunoprecipitation of solubilized conotoxin GVIA receptors (N-type calcium channels). Antibodies against two synaptic proteins (p35--syntaxin 1 and p58--synaptotagmin) were produced and used to purify and characterize a ternary complex containing N-type channels associated with these two proteins. These results provided the first evidence for a specific interaction between presynaptic calcium channels and SNARE proteins involved in synaptic vesicle docking and calcium-dependent exocytosis. Immunoprecipitation experiments supported the conclusion that syntaxin 1/SNAP-25/VAMP/synaptotagmin I or II complexes associate with N-type, P/Q-type, but not L-type calcium channels from rat brain nerve terminals. Immunofluorescent confocal microscopy at the frog neuromuscular junction was consistent with the co-localization of syntaxin 1, SNAP-25, and calcium channels, all of which are predominantly expressed at active zones of the presynaptic plasma membrane facing post-synaptic folds rich in acetylcholine receptors. The interaction of proteins implicated in calcium-dependent exocytosis with presynaptic calcium channels may locate the sensor(s) that trigger vesicle fusion within a microdomain of calcium entry.     

敲减突触结合蛋白1通过抑制 IL-6/STAT3信号通路改善结肠炎病变

突触结合蛋白1 (synaptotagmin 1,Syt1)属于突触结合蛋白家族一员,在神经递质囊泡转运和胞吐中发挥作用。Syt1在肠道上皮中有表达,但其在结肠炎中的生物学功能尚不明确。本工作以Syt1转基因小鼠结合葡聚糖硫酸钠(dextran sodium sulfate, DSS)诱导型溃疡性结肠炎模型,通过qRT-PCR、免疫染色及Western印迹检测Syt1在生理状态及肠炎状态下在结肠中表达的动态变化;采用H&E染色、免疫染色、Western印迹等方法,观察Syt1在结肠炎的炎症反应及肠道上皮再生修复中的作用。结果显示：正常野生小鼠的结肠上皮及结直肠癌患者癌旁组织的肠上皮细胞中均有较高水平的Syt1表达;DSS处理使Syt1在结肠中表达显著升高(P<0.01)。DSS诱导小鼠肠炎模型中,相较于对照组,Syt1敲减小鼠体重降低情况、结肠炎性红肿和长度缩短等均显著减轻(P<0.05),而再生隐窝数量则增多、Ki67增殖细胞也增多(P<0.01);结肠组织中的CD45免疫细胞、F4/80巨噬细胞浸润减少(P<0.001),炎症性肠病相关的促炎因子IL...     

3′,5′‐Cyclic adenosine monophosphate regulates expression of synaptotagmin in neonatal sympathetic ganglia in vitro

The expression of the synaptic vesicle protein, synaptotagmin, in developing rat superior cervical ganglia is influenced by transsynaptic factors associated with membrane depolarization. The present study examines the role of cyclic AMP in the regulation of synaptotagmin in neonatal superior cervical ganglia maintained in explant culture. Ganglia were treated for 48 h in vitro with the Na⁺‐channel ionophore, veratridine, or with pharmacological agents that alter cyclic AMP levels. Levels of cyclic AMP and synaptotagmin were determined by radioimmunoassay. Veratridine treatment significantly increased cyclic AMP in cultured ganglia, with a long time course, and also increased synaptotagmin levels. Drugs that elevate cyclic AMP levels significantly increased synaptotagmin levels, with similar magnitude to that produced by veratridine treatment. These pharmacological agents did not alter neuron survival or total ganglionic protein content. No additive effects were observed after combined treatment with veratridine and pharmacological agents that increased cyclic AMP. Agents that blocked adenylyl cyclase blocked the veratridine‐induced increase in synaptotagmin levels. The results suggest that regulation of expression of synaptotagmin in neonatal sympathetic neurons is mediated partially by cyclic AMP. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Neurobiol 46: 281–288, 2001     

细胞凋亡检测方法新进展

细胞凋亡是生命科学研究的热点之一,检测细胞凋亡的方法层出不穷。目前,用于体外细胞凋亡检测的方法已相对成熟,比如:流式细胞术、TUNEL检测法、DNA片断检测等。而用于体内细胞凋亡检测的试剂则正在研究之中,各种检测试剂不断出现。其中,Annexin V、Synap-totagmin I-C2A、ApoSense家族分子与其他检测试剂相比具有一定的优势。该文在介绍几种常用的体外细胞凋亡检测方法的同时,重点介绍上述三种试剂。