5-Aminolevulinate synthase and the first step of heme biosynthesis

5-Aminolevulinate synthase catalyzes the condensation of glycine and succinyl-CoA to yield 5-aminolevulinate. In animals, fungi, and some bacteria, 5-aminolevulinate synthase is the first enzyme of the heme biosynthetic pathway. Mutations on the human erythroid 5-aminolevulinate synthase, which is localized on the X-chromosome, have been associated with X-linked sideroblastic anemia. Recent biochemical and molecular biological developments provide important insights into the structure and function of this enzyme. In animals, two aminolevulinate synthase genes, one housekeeping and one erythroid-specific, have been identified. In addition, the isolation of 5-aminolevulinate synthase genomic and cDNA clones have permitted the development of expression systems, which have tremendously increased the yields of purified enzyme, facilitating structural and functional studies. A lysine residue has been identified as the residue involved in the Schiff base linkage of the pyridoxal 5ntl144u00vp1x574/xxlarge8242.gif" alt="prime" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0">-phosphate cofactor, and the catalytic domain has been assigned to the C-terminus of the enzyme. A conserved glycine-rich motif, common to all aminolevulinate synthases, has been proposed to be at the pyridoxal 5ntl144u00vp1x574/xxlarge8242.gif" alt="prime" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0">phosphate-binding site. A heme-regulatory motif, present in the presequences of 5-aminolevulinate synthase precursors, has been shown to mediate the inhibition of the mitochondrial import of the precursor proteins in the presence of heme. Finally, the regulatory mechanisms, exerted by an iron-responsive element binding protein, during the translation of erythroid 5-aminolevulinate synthase mRNA, are discussed in relation to heme biosynthesis.     

Geminin is required for left-right patterning through regulating Kupffer's vesicle formation and ciliogenesis in zebrafish

Geminin plays an important role in coordinating the cell cycle with anterior–posterior patterning during embryonic development. However, whether it is involved in the regulation of left–right (LR) patterning remains unknown. Here, we reported that geminin is required for setting up heart and visceral laterality during zebrafish development. Defective heart and visceral laterality was observed in geminin morphants. Further study demonstrated that the left-sided nodal/spaw in the lateral plate mesoderm (LPM) as well as the sideness of its downstream targets lefty2 and lefty1 was perturbed in geminin morphants. Upstream of the left-sided Nodal signal along the regulatory cascade of LR asymmetry, knock down of geminin resulted in defective Kupffer’s vesicle (KV) formation and ciliogenesis rather than middle line defects. Predominant distribution of an antisense morpholino against geminin in dorsal forerunner cells (DFCs) led to defective KV morphogenesis and perturbed LR asymmetry, similar to those of geminin morphants, indicating a cell-autonomous role of geminin in regulating KV formation and ciliogenesis. Our results demonstrate that geminin is required for proper KV formation and ciliogenesis, thus playing an important part in setting up LR asymmetry.     

板栗疫病菌ntl基因的功能研究

板栗疫病菌(Cryphonectria parasitica)是引起板栗疫病的病原真菌。在实验室前期研究中,获得了一个不支持病毒复制且丧失致病力的板栗疫病菌紫外诱变突变株UV57。与野生型菌株EP155相比,UV57中检测不到蛋白100472的表达。为研究蛋白100472的功能,我们构建了编码100472蛋白的ntl基因的缺失突变体△ntl及其互补转化株△ntl-com。与野生型EP155相比,△ntl菌株表型不变,但对休眠板栗树枝的致病性明显降低,而互补转化株△ntl-com的致病力与野生型没有区别。ntl基因的缺失不影响低毒病毒CHV1-EP713的复制累积量,但导致参与G蛋白信号传导途径的cpga1、cpgb1、cpgc1和ste12基因以及参与MAPK途径的cpmk1转录水平明显下调。本研究结果为阐明病原真菌致病机制提供了新的知识。     

The freshwater microcrustacea of Easter Island

The ntl216715g/xxlarge8216.gif" alt="lsquo" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0">Cladocerantl216715g/xxlarge8217.gif" alt="rsquo" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0">, Copepod and Ostracod fauna of Easter Island amounts to only five species. Three of these are wide-ranging, and four are cyclic parthenogens or at least capable of parthenogenesis. Two, the Cladoceran Alona weinecki and the Ostracod Sarscypridopsis sp., are more interesting from a biogeographic point of view, because restricted (apart from Easter Island) to the subantarctic. It is argued that this is strong evidence of their introduction by man, not by ntl216715g/xxlarge8216.gif" alt="lsquo" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0">naturalntl216715g/xxlarge8217.gif" alt="rsquo" align="BASELINE" BORDER="0"> passive dispersal.