Rotational movement during cyclic nucleotide-gated channel opening

Cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channels are crucial components of visual, olfactory and gustatory signalling pathways. They open in response to direct binding of intracellular cyclic nucleotides and thus contribute to cellular control of both the membrane potential and intracellular Ca2+ levels. Cytosolic Ni2+ potentiates the rod channel (CNG1) response to cyclic nucleotides and inhibits the olfactory channel (CNG2) response. Modulation is due to coordination of Ni2+ by channel-specific histidines in the C-linker, between the S6 transmembrane segment and the cyclic nucleotide-binding domain. Here we report, using a histidine scan of the initial C-linker of the CNG1 channel, stripes of sites producing Ni2+ potentiation or Ni2+ inhibition, separated by 50 degrees on an alpha-helix. These results suggest a model for channel gating where rotation of the post-S6 region around the channel's central axis realigns the Ni2+-coordinating residues of multiple subunits. This rotation probably initiates movement of the S6 and pore opening.     

A cyclic nucleotide-gated conductance in olfactory receptor cilia

Olfactory transduction is thought to be initiated by the binding of odorants to specific receptor proteins in the cilia of olfactory receptor cells. The mechanism by which odorant binding could initiate membrane depolarization is unknown, but the recent discovery of an odorant-stimulated adenylate cyclase in purified olfactory cilia suggests that cyclic AMP may serve as an intracellular messenger for olfactory transduction. If so, then there might be a conductance in the ciliary plasma membrane which is controlled by cAMP. Here we report that excised patches of ciliary plasma membrane, obtained from dissociated receptor cells, contain a conductance which is gated directly by cAMP. This conductance resembles the cyclic GMP-gated conductance that mediates phototransduction in rod and cone outer segments, but differs in that it is activated by both cAMP and cGMP. Our data provide a mechanistic basis by which an odorant-stimulated increase in cyclic nucleotide concentration could lead to an increase in membrane conductance and therefore, to membrane depolarization. These data suggest a remarkable similarity between the mechanisms of olfactory and visual transduction and indicate considerable conservation of sensory transduction mechanisms.     

Functional characterization of a heteromeric NMDA receptor channel expressed from cloned cDNAs.

The glutamate receptor (GluR) channel plays a key part in brain function. Among GluR channel subtypes, the NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor channel which is highly permeable to Ca2+ is essential for the synaptic plasticity underlying memory, learning and development. Furthermore, abnormal activation of the NMDA receptor channel may trigger the neuronal cell death observed in various brain disorders. A complementary DNA encoding a subunit of the rodent NMDA receptor channel (NMDAR1 or zeta 1) has been cloned and its functional properties investigated. Here we report the identification and primary structure of a novel mouse NMDA receptor channel subunit, designated as epsilon 1, after cloning and sequencing the cDNA. The epsilon 1 subunit shows 11-18% amino-acid sequence identity with rodent GluR channel subunits that have been characterized so far and has structural features common to neurotransmitter-gated ion channels. Expression from cloned cDNAs of the epsilon 1 subunit together with the zeta 1 subunit in Xenopus oocytes yields functional GluR channels with high activity and characteristics of the NMDA receptor channel. Furthermore, the heteromeric NMDA receptor channel can be activated by glycine alone.     

Determination of the subunit stoichiometry of a voltage-activated potassium channel.

The voltage-activated K+, Na+ and Ca2+ channels are responsible for the generation and propagation of electrical signals in cell membranes. The K+ channels are multimeric membrane proteins formed by the aggregation of an unknown number of independent subunits. By studying the interaction of a scorpion toxin with coexpressed wild-type and toxin-insensitive mutant Shaker K+ channels, the subunit stoichiometry can be determined. The Shaker K+ channel is found to have a tetrameric structure. This is consistent with the sequence relationship between a K+ channel and each of the four internally homologous repeats of Na+ and Ca2+ channels.     

核子-核子系统3S1-3D1道可分离势的改进

该文分析了核子-核子系统EST可分离势近似方法的在壳及离壳性质,计算了3S1-3D1道的相移值及半离壳函数值,与实验数据比较,指出了EST方法的局限性.由于EST方法缺陷在于将势模型半离壳R矩阵元供作可分离势的形状因子,从而提出克服缺陷的方案,对可分近似作出相应的改进.     

T-complex polypeptide-1 is a subunit of a heteromeric particle in the eukaryotic cytosol.

The murine t-complex encodes t-complex polypeptide-1 (TCP1), which is constitutively expressed in almost all cells, and upregulated during spermatogenesis. Mammalian sequences have greater than 96% identity with each other, and greater than 60% identity with Drosophila melanogaster and yeast orthologues. TCP1 is essential in yeast, and is postulated to be the cytosolic mammalian equivalent of groEL. We report here that, in the native state, murine and human TCP1 is distributed throughout the cytosol as an 800K-950K hetero-oligomeric particle in association with four to six unidentified proteins and two Hsp70 heat-shock proteins. Negative-stain electron microscopy indicates that the structure is two stacked rings, 12-16 nm in diameter. Therefore, despite similarities with the chaperonin 60 proteins, these data indicate that TCP1 is biochemically and structurally unique. We suggest that TCP1 may represent one of a family of molecules in the eukaryotic cytosol involved in protein folding and regulated in part by their heteromeric associations.     

A constitutively open potassium channel formed by KCNQ1 and KCNE3

Mutations in all four known KCNQ potassium channel alpha-subunit genes lead to human diseases. KCNQ1 (KvLQT1) interacts with the beta-subunit KCNE1 (IsK, minK) to form the slow, depolarization-activated potassium current I(Ks) that is affected in some forms of cardiac arrhythmia. Here we show that the novel beta-subunit KCNE3 markedly changes KCNQ1 properties to yield currents that are nearly instantaneous and depend linearly on voltage. It also suppresses the currents of KCNQ4 and HERG potassium channels. In the intestine, KCNQ1 and KCNE3 messenger RNAs colocalized in crypt cells. This localization and the pharmacology, voltage-dependence and stimulation by cyclic AMP of KCNQ1/KCNE3 currents indicate that these proteins may assemble to form the potassium channel that is important for cyclic AMP-stimulated intestinal chloride secretion and that is involved in secretory diarrhoea and cystic fibrosis.     

Structure of Epac2 in complex with a cyclic AMP analogue and RAP1B

Epac proteins are activated by binding of the second messenger cAMP and then act as guanine nucleotide exchange factors for Rap proteins. The Epac proteins are involved in the regulation of cell adhesion and insulin secretion. Here we have determined the structure of Epac2 in complex with a cAMP analogue (Sp-cAMPS) and RAP1B by X-ray crystallography and single particle electron microscopy. The structure represents the cAMP activated state of the Epac2 protein with the RAP1B protein trapped in the course of the exchange reaction. Comparison with the inactive conformation reveals that cAMP binding causes conformational changes that allow the cyclic nucleotide binding domain to swing from a position blocking the Rap binding site towards a docking site at the Ras exchange motif domain.     

A cyclic GMP-activated channel in dissociated cells of the chick pineal gland.

Phototransduction in the vertebrate retina is dependent in part on a cyclic GMP-activated ionic channel in the plasma membrane of rods and cones. But other vertebrate cells are also photosensitive. Cells of the chick pineal gland have a photosensitive circadian rhythm in melatonin secretion that persists in dissociated cell culture. Exposure to light causes inhibition of melatonin secretion, and entrainment of the intrinsic circadian oscillator. Chick pinealocytes express several 'retinal' proteins, including arrestin, transducin and a protein similar to the visual pigment rhodopsin. Pinealocytes of lower vertebrates display hyperpolarizing responses to brief pulses of light. Thus it is possible that some of the mechanisms of phototransduction are similar in retinal and pineal photoreceptors. We report here the first recordings of cyclic GMP-activated channels in an extraretinal photoreceptor. Application of GMP, but not cyclic AMP, to excised inside-out patches caused activation of a 15-25 pS cationic channel. These channels may be essential for phototransduction in the chick pineal gland.     

正则图的环边连通性和环连通性之间的关系

研究了一般3 正则连通图G的环边连通性和环连通性之间的关系,证明了G的环边连通度等于其环连通度。讨论了G的环连通度与环点连通度之间的关系,指出当G的顶点个数不少于其环连通度的6倍时,其环连通度等于其环点连通度。     

Primary structure and functional expression of a cyclic nucleotide-activated channel from olfactory neurons.

Odorant signal transduction occurs in the specialized cilia of the olfactory sensory neurons. Considerable biochemical evidence now indicates that this process could be mediated by a G protein-coupled cascade using cyclic AMP as an intracellular second messenger. A stimulatory G protein alpha subunit is expressed at high levels in olfactory neurons and is specifically enriched in the cilia, as is a novel form of adenylyl cyclase. This implies that the olfactory transduction cascade might involve unique molecular components. Electrophysiological studies have identified a cyclic nucleotide-activated ion channel in olfactory cilia. These observations provide evidence for a model in which odorants increase intracellular cAMP concentration, which in turn activates this channel and depolarizes the sensory neuron. An analogous cascade regulating a cGMP-gated channel mediates visual transduction in photoreceptor cells. The formal similarities between olfactory and visual transduction suggest that the two systems might use homologous channels. Here we report the molecular cloning, functional expression and characterization of a channel that is likely to mediate olfactory transduction.     

TRPV3 is a calcium-permeable temperature-sensitive cation channel

Transient receptor potential (TRP) proteins are cation-selective channels that function in processes as diverse as sensation and vasoregulation. Mammalian TRP channels that are gated by heat and capsaicin (>43 degrees C; TRPV1 (ref. 1)), noxious heat (>52 degrees C; TRPV2 (ref. 2)), and cooling (< 22 degrees C; TRPM8 (refs 3, 4)) have been cloned; however, little is known about the molecular determinants of temperature sensing in the range between approximately 22 degrees C and 40 degrees C. Here we have identified a member of the vanilloid channel family, human TRPV3 (hTRPV3) that is expressed in skin, tongue, dorsal root ganglion, trigeminal ganglion, spinal cord and brain. Increasing temperature from 22 degrees C to 40 degrees C in mammalian cells transfected with hTRPV3 elevated intracellular calcium by activating a nonselective cationic conductance. As in published recordings from sensory neurons, the current was steeply dependent on temperature, sensitized with repeated heating, and displayed a marked hysteresis on heating and cooling. On the basis of these properties, we propose that hTRPV3 is thermosensitive in the physiological range of temperatures between TRPM8 and TRPV1.     

循环三维竞争模型的稳定性分析

该论文对循环三维竞争模型的稳定性进行研究,给出了这类系统在正平衡点处的局部渐近稳定的条件和局渐近稳定的条件.根据得到的结果,使得该类系统在平衡点的稳定性可根据系统的参数满足的条件来判定.     

差分方程xn+1=(α+B1xn-1+B3xn-3+…+B2k+1xn-2k-1)/(A+B0xn+B2xn-2+…+B2kxn-2k)的动力学

考察差分方程x_(n 1)=(α B_1x_(n-1) B_3x_(n-3) … B_(2k 1)x_(n-2k-1))/(A B_0x_n B_2x_(n-2) … B_(2k)x_(n-2k)),n=0,1,…的动力学行为,在4种情形下分别讨论方程解的性质.     

1-苯甲酰基-3-芳基硫脲与肼的成环反应研究

1-苯甲酰基-3-芳基硫脲和水合肼反应生成了3-苯基-5-芳胺基-4H-1，2，4-三氮唑。产物结构经红外光谱、核磁共振光谱和高分辨质谱表征．     

电子激发态CCl2自由基被H2O猝灭的研究

对CCl4/Ar混合气体直流脉冲放电产生CCl2自由基,再用541．52nm激光将电子基态CCl2激励到激发态A1B21（0,4,0）振动态的K＝0能级上,通过检测激发态CCl2时间分辨荧光信号,测得室温下CCl2（A1B1和a^3B1)被H2O分子猝灭的实验结果,用三能级模型分析处理实验数据,获得态分辨速率常数KA和Ka值,利用UMP2（Full）／6－31G（d,p）方法计算了该反应的势能面,揭示了反应的插入和加成－消除机理。     

高效液相色谱分析阿维菌素(AVM)乳浊液中有效成分B1a和B1b

阿维菌素(Avermectin,AvM)是一种新型大环内酯类广谱抗寄生虫药物,在我国广为应用.实验采用Dionex 高效液相色谱仪对阿维菌素乳浊液进行分离,紫外检测器检测,结果表明AVMB1a和AVMB1b能与其他干扰峰较好地分离,其中AVMB1a在5～250 mg/L的浓度范围内呈良好的线性关系,回收率为98.8%～100.5%,时间精密度为0.73%,峰面积精密度为0.31%,得到较好的分析结果.     

AKR1家族基因AKR1C1,AKR1C3,AKR1B1调控肺腺癌A549细胞顺铂耐药的研究

探究醛酮还原酶家族1(Aldo-Keto Reductases family 1,AKR1)3个基因AKR1C1,AKR1C3,AKR1B1调控肺腺癌A549细胞顺铂耐药的作用。通过对肺腺癌A549细胞及相应的顺铂耐药细胞A549/DDP的差异表达基因谱进行分析,发现AKR1家族的3个成员AKR1C1,AKR1C3及AKR1B1同时在A549/DDP细胞中显著上调。在细胞水平上对这3个基因进行了RNA定量实验,抑制剂实验和RNA干扰实验,观察其是否参与调控A549/DDP对顺铂的药物敏感性。研究结果证实:AKR1C1或AKR1B1酶活抑制剂与顺铂联合使用可显著提高A549/DDP细胞的顺铂敏感性,而抑制AKR1C3酶活性并不能引起A549/DDP对顺铂的敏感性增强;此外,基于RNA干扰技术,在A549/DDP细胞中同时敲减AKR1C1和AKR1B1不仅增强了顺铂的细胞毒性,且同时显著增强了顺铂诱导的细胞凋亡作用。以上结果表明,AKR1家族中的AKR1C1和AKR1B1基因在调节A549细胞顺铂耐药中起到了关键的作用。     

The molecular choreography of a store-operated calcium channel

Store-operated calcium channels (SOCs) serve essential functions from secretion and motility to gene expression and cell growth. A fundamental mystery is how the depletion of Ca2+ from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) activates Ca2+ entry through SOCs in the plasma membrane. Recent studies using genetic approaches have identified genes encoding the ER Ca2+ sensor and a prototypic SOC, the Ca2+-release-activated Ca2+ (CRAC) channel. New findings reveal a unique mechanism for channel activation, in which the CRAC channel and its sensor migrate independently to closely apposed sites of interaction in the ER and the plasma membrane.