Exendin-4螺旋结构对生物活性及稳定性的影响

针对Exendin-4的螺旋结构特点, 采用去掉螺旋序列、 用3个连续Ala替换螺旋以及Gln13替换为Tyr13的方式对N端α-螺旋及C端α-螺旋进行改造, 设计出4个结构模拟物. 通过圆二光谱和荧光光谱进行结构分析, 结合模拟物生物活性实验, 分析Exendin-4螺旋结构与生物活性的关系. 结果表明：  Exendin-4的N端螺旋比C端螺旋对生物活性影响更大； 在抗二肽基肽酶（DPPⅣ酶）的稳定性实验中, C端螺旋比N端螺旋具有更好维系Exendin-4稳定性的作用； 螺旋结构中Tyr13可作为提高Exendin-4生物活性的重要优化位点.     

一类含参半正二阶离散周期边值问题正解的存在性

用Guo-Krasnoselskii不动点定理给出半正二阶离散周期边值问题正解的存在性和多解性结果, 其中λ>0为参数, ［1,T］_z={1,2,…,T}, f: ［1,T］_z×［0,∞)→R连续且存在常数D>0, 使得f(t,u)≥-D, (t,u)∈［1,T］_z×［0,∞), a: ［1,T］_z→(0,∞), 02(π/2T).     

数据驱动的铝基复合材料性能预测和逆向设计

采用数据驱动的方法对 SiCp(0.5CNT)/7075Al 铝基复合材料的化学成分以及制备工艺进行了分析, 针对抗拉强度和延伸率两个力学性能进行了特征重要性分析, 构建了包含 8 种机器学习算法的集成框架, 自动进行模型的参数调优和最优模型选择, 并在此基础上进行了材料逆向设计. 实验结果表明, 在 470 ${^\circ}$C 固溶 40 min, 120${^\circ}$C 时效 15 h 的热处理工艺下, SiCp(0.5CNT)/7075Al-1.0Mg 复合材料抗拉强度和延伸率的预测值为 617.48 MPa 和 2.98%, 实验值为 647.0 MPa 和 3.31%, 两项物理性能的平均绝对百分比误差(mean absolute percentage errors, MAPE)较小, 依次为 4.56% 和 9.97%. 这说明本数据驱动方法对铝基复合材料的工艺优化和性能提升有一定指导意义.     

2017—2019 年北京地区实验动物质量抽检结果分析

摘要:目的 比对分析 2017—2019 年北京地区实验动物微生物及遗传质量监测结果,为实验动物产业发展提供参考。 方法 按照国家和地方现行实验动物检测标准,对北京地区实验动物生产单位进行抽检,并发布检测报告。按照报告数据,对此阶段小鼠、大鼠、豚鼠、地鼠、兔、犬、猴和小型猪共 8 个品种的实验动物按照品种、等级、单位等进行分类,分析质量问题,并与 2014—2016 年同期实验动物质量比对,分析变化趋势。 结果 2017—2019 年分别抽检动物 144、131 和 135 批次,检出不合格批次分别为 30、15 和 17 批。 不合格主要因素为兔、犬及猪免疫不达标(20 批) ,病原感染 20 批,未发现遗传变异。 与 2014—2016 年同期相比,未检出遗传问题相同,免疫不达标状况好转,但病原感染出现上升。 结论 通过质量分析比对,能够为实验动物产业健康发展提供数据支持。     

Blockage of the NLRP3 inflammasome by MCC950 improves anti-tumor immune responses in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

The NLRP3 inflammasome is a critical innate immune pathway responsible for producing active interleukin (IL)-1β, which is associated with tumor development and immunity. However, the mechanisms regulating the inflammatory microenvironment, tumorigenesis and tumor immunity are unclear. Herein, we show that the NLRP3 inflammasome was over-expressed in human HNSCC tissues and that the IL-1β concentration was increased in the peripheral blood of HNSCC patients. Additionally, elevated NLRP3 inflammasome levels were detected in tumor tissues of Tgfbr1/Pten 2cKO HNSCC mice, and elevated IL-1β levels were detected in the peripheral blood serum, spleen, draining lymph nodes and tumor tissues. Blocking NLRP3 inflammasome activation using MCC950 remarkably reduced IL-1β production in an HNSCC mouse model and reduced the numbers of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), regulatory T cells (Tregs) and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). Moreover, inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation increased the numbers of CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells in HNSCC mice. Notably, the numbers of exhausted PD-1⁺ and Tim3⁺ T cells were significantly reduced. A human HNSCC tissue microarray showed that NLRP3 inflammasome expression was correlated with the expression of CD8 and CD4, the Treg marker Foxp3, the MDSC markers CD11b and CD33, and the TAM markers CD68 and CD163, PD-1 and Tim3. Overall, our results demonstrate that the NLRP3 inflammasome/IL-1β pathway promotes tumorigenesis in HNSCC and inactivation of this pathway delays tumor growth, accompanied by decreased immunosuppressive cell accumulation and an increased number of effector T cells. Thus, inhibition of the tumor microenvironment through the NLRP3 inflammasome/IL-1β pathway may provide a novel approach for HNSCC therapy.     

Microsatellite instability in gastric cancer: molecular bases,clinical perspectives,and new treatment approaches

Gastric cancer is one of the most aggressive malignancies, with limited treatment options in both locally advanced and metastatic setting, resulting in poor prognosis. Based on genomic characterization, stomach tumour has recently been described as a heterogeneous disease composed by different subtypes, each of them with peculiar molecular aspects and specific clinical behaviour. With an incidence of 22% among all western gastric tumour cases, stomach cancer with microsatellite instability was identified as one of these subgroups. Retrospective studies and limited prospective trials reported differences between gastric cancers with microsatellite stability and those with instability, mainly concerning clinical and pathological features, but also in regard to immunological microenvironment, correlation with prognostic value, and responses to treatment. In particular, gastric cancer with microsatellite instability constitutes a small but relevant subgroup associated with older age, female sex, distal stomach location, and lower number of lymph-node metastases. Emerging data attribute to microsatellite instability status a favourable prognostic meaning, whereas the poor outcomes reported after perioperative chemotherapy administration suggest a detrimental role of cytotoxic drugs in this gastric cancer subgroup. The strong immunogenicity and the widespread expression of immune-checkpoint ligands make microsatellite instability subtype more vulnerable to immunotherapeutic approach, e.g., with anti-PD-L1 and anti-CTLA4 antibodies. Since gastric cancer with microsatellite instability shows specific features and clinical behaviour not overlapping with microsatellite stable disease, microsatellite instability test might be suitable for inclusion in a diagnostic setting for all tumour stages to guarantee the most targeted and effective treatment to every patient.     

论《熊出没》中的动画角色设计

动画片《熊出没》不仅获得了极高的收视率，还获得了“金猴奖”中动画系列片金奖和动画形象金奖两个重量级奖项。该动画片成功的关键在于动画角色的塑造，通过三个主要角色：聪明的熊大、好吃懒做的熊二及顶着大光头的伐木工人，角色设定相对单调，但仍然受到大众的喜爱，原因就在于“创意”独特，符合受众的感知能力，满足了受众群体的视觉需求。在形象塑造上通过故事情节现代化的演绎、夸张动作安排、独特的地方口音和流行化语言风格等富有人性化的艺术表现形式，刻画了三个角色的性格，符合读者的审美期待，实现了虚拟动画和真实受众之间的沟通。     

General mechanisms of drought response and their application in drought resistance improvement in plants

Plants often encounter unfavorable environmental conditions because of their sessile lifestyle. These adverse factors greatly affect the geographic distribution of plants, as well as their growth and productivity. Drought stress is one of the premier limitations to global agricultural production due to the complexity of the water-limiting environment and changing climate. Plants have evolved a series of mechanisms at the morphological, physiological, biochemical, cellular, and molecular levels to overcome water deficit or drought stress conditions. The drought resistance of plants can be divided into four basic types-drought avoidance, drought tolerance, drought escape, and drought recovery. Various drought-related traits, including root traits, leaf traits, osmotic adjustment capabilities, water potential, ABA content, and stability of the cell membrane, have been used as indicators to evaluate the drought resistance of plants. In the last decade, scientists have investigated the genetic and molecular mechanisms of drought resistance to enhance the drought resistance of various crops, and significant progress has been made with regard to drought avoidance and drought tolerance. With increasing knowledge to comprehensively decipher the complicated mechanisms of drought resistance in model plants, it still remains an enormous challenge to develop water-saving and drought-resistant crops to cope with the water shortage and increasing demand for food production in the future.     

Junctional adhesion molecule-A: functional diversity through molecular promiscuity

Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) of the immunoglobulin superfamily (IgSF) regulate important processes such as cell proliferation, differentiation and morphogenesis. This activity is primarily due to their ability to initiate intracellular signaling cascades at cell–cell contact sites. Junctional adhesion molecule-A (JAM-A) is an IgSF-CAM with a short cytoplasmic tail that has no catalytic activity. Nevertheless, JAM-A is involved in a variety of biological processes. The functional diversity of JAM-A resides to a large part in a C-terminal PDZ domain binding motif which directly interacts with nine different PDZ domain-containing proteins. The molecular promiscuity of its PDZ domain motif allows JAM-A to recruit protein scaffolds to specific sites of cell–cell adhesion and to assemble signaling complexes at those sites. Here, we review the molecular characteristics of JAM-A, including its dimerization, its interaction with scaffolding proteins, and the phosphorylation of its cytoplasmic domain, and we describe how these characteristics translate into diverse biological activities.