The roles of WRN and BLM RecQ helicases in the Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres

Approximately 10% of all cancers, but a higher proportion of sarcomas, use the recombination-based alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT) to maintain telomeres. Two RecQ helicase genes, BLM and WRN, play important roles in homologous recombination repair and they have been implicated in telomeric recombination activity, but their precise roles in ALT are unclear. Using analysis of sequence variation present in human telomeres, we found that a WRN– ALT+ cell line lacks the class of complex telomere mutations attributed to inter-telomeric recombination in other ALT+ cell lines. This suggests that WRN facilitates inter-telomeric recombination when there are sequence differences between the donor and recipient molecules or that sister-telomere interactions are suppressed in the presence of WRN and this promotes inter-telomeric recombination. Depleting BLM in the WRN– ALT+ cell line increased the mutation frequency at telomeres and at the MS32 minisatellite, which is a marker of ALT. The absence of complex telomere mutations persisted in BLM-depleted clones, and there was a clear increase in sequence homogenization across the telomere and MS32 repeat arrays. These data indicate that BLM suppresses unequal sister chromatid interactions that result in excessive homogenization at MS32 and at telomeres in ALT+ cells.     

Isolation and characterisation of nuv11, a mutation affecting meiotic and mitotic recombination in Aspergillus nidulans

A mutant of Aspergillus nidulans, designated nuv11, has been isolated as hypersensitive to the monofunctional alkylating agent MNNG and the quasi-UV-mimetic mutagen 4-NQO. The mutation was recessive, resulting from mutation of a single gene which mapped to chromosome IV, and was non-allelic to the previously characterised repair-deficient mutations uvsB and uvsH which are also located on this linkage group. The nuv11 mutation results in slow growth, deficient intragenic and intergenic meiotic recombination, increased spontaneous chromosome instability, and increased intragenic and intergenic mitotic recombination in homozygous diploids. By screening a wild-type gene bank of A nidulans, a clone (pNUV11A40) has been isolated which complements the nuv11 mutation, restoring wild-type responses to both MNNG and 4-NQO.     

The two molecular weight forms of rat phenylalanine hydroxylase are encoded by different messenger RNAs

Immunoprecipitation of the phenylalanine hydroxylase formed by translation of rat liver RNA in a rabbit reticulocyte cell-free protein synthesis system was used to examine the origin of the molecular weight heterogeneity of the enzyme. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide electrophoresis of the immunoprecipitated products showed that in most cases a single specifically immunoprecipitated polypeptide was produced which corresponded to the higher molecular weight (H) form of phenylalanine hydroxylase (Mr = 50,000). The identity of the product was confirmed by immunological competition and peptide mapping. RNA from other rats, however, coded for both the H-form and the lower molecular weight (L) form of phenylalanine hydroxylase or for only the L-form. The evidence suggests that the L-form derives from a different mRNA, rather than by proteolysis of the H-form, an interpretation which is supported by the isolation of the lower form of phenylalanine hydroxylase from livers of some rats.     

实夜蛾属二近缘种对寄主植物次生物质的反应:次生物质对幼虫生长和食物利用的影响

实夜蛾属(Heliothis)的棉铃虫(H. armigcra)和烟青虫(H. assulta)是近缘种,幼虫期取食多种相同的植物,其中含有不同的次生物质.本项工作是在人工饲料中分别加入0.5%的烟碱、番茄苷、棉子酚、丹宁酸等饲养早期六龄的幼虫,测定它们对生长和食物利用的影响.结果表明这些次生物质对两种幼虫有不同的作用:烟碱对棉铃虫没有明显影响,但对烟青虫的取食却有一定的刺激作用.丹宁酸、棉子酚、番茄苷可抑制两种幼虫的生长,而以番茄苷抑制烟青虫的生长最为显著.番茄苷主要通过抑制取食来影响幼虫的生长,而丹宁酸和棉子酚则具有降低消化率的作用.通过次生物质对这两种幼虫效应的比较可知,棉铃虫有较大的忍耐力.     

低通气量呼吸对犬左空心肌收缩性的影响

大量的研究表明,急性呼吸衰竭时多伴有心血管功能的损害,但有关急性呼吸衰竭对于左室心肌收缩性的影响所知甚少。本文对开胸麻醉犬在低通气引起呼吸衰竭时,左室心肌收缩性的变化进行了观测和分析。结果表明,在实验组(n=9)低通气呼吸(通气量小于160ml/min/kg,PaO_2小于60mmHg)时,心率(HR)、主动脉平均压(MOP)、左室收缩峰压(LV-SP)、左室内压最大上升速率(dP/dt_(max))、节段心肌发展张力(DT)及其最大发展速率(dT/dt_(max))均显著降低,心肌开始收缩至dp/dt_(max)的时间(t-dp/dt_(max))和至dT/dt_(max)的时间(t-dT/dt_(max))则显著增加,与低通气呼吸前比较均有统计学差异。而在对照组(n=5)保持正常通气(通气量大于450ml/min/kg,PaO_2大于70mmHg),观察45min,未见上述指标有明显改变。本研究表明,急性呼吸衰竭时左室心肌收缩性严重受损。     

江苏泗洪下草湾中中新世脊椎动物群——6.鸟纲

本文记述了近年来在江苏泗洪下草湾组中补采到的6种鸟类,其中包括天岗琵鹭 Platalea tiangangensis sp. nov.和松林庄古石鸡 Palaeoalectoris songlinensis gen. et sp. nov.,前者系琵鹭属迄今最早的记录,后者为雉科鹑族目前已知最早的成员.     

四川盐源盆地哺乳类化石及其意义

本文简述盐源盆地上新世和更新世晚期两个不同时代的哺乳动物化石十余种,据之修正了该盆地晚新生代沉积的时代和对比关系.