异三聚体G蛋白在拟南芥生长过程中的作用

利用拟南芥的野生型和异三聚体G蛋白α亚基基因GPA1缺失突变体(gpα1-1,gpα1-2)和超表达突变体(wGα,cGα)为材料,对植株生长发育的一些形态指标进行了观测比较．结果表明2个缺失突变体的植株高度、叶片宽度、长角果果柄长度都明显超过野生型,而超表达突变体的部分指标与野生型相比也有明显差别．实验结果表明,异三聚体G蛋白参与某些器官生长发育的调节,初步证明G蛋白α亚基在伸长生长过程中可能起负调节作用。     

蛋白酶体激活因子REGγ的肿瘤相关靶蛋白研究进展

蛋白酶体激活因子REGγ属于蛋白酶体激活因子REG(又名11 S)家族的成员之一,主要是通过激活20 S蛋白酶体以非泛素化和非ATP依赖的方式降解蛋白质.近年来,越来越多的研究表明,REGγ在多种肿瘤中出现了异常表达并与肿瘤的发生发展密切相关.REGγ主要是通过降解多种靶蛋白并调控相关的信号通路参与肿瘤的发生发展.本文综述了REGγ在肿瘤中发挥作用的靶蛋白,旨在进一步了解REGγ参与肿瘤发生发展的机制并揭示其作为人类多种肿瘤的诊断标志物和治疗靶点的潜在可能性.     

甘蓝型油菜G蛋白β亚基基因的克隆和表达分析

根据拟南芥等G蛋白β亚基基因的DNA序列,采用RT-PCR技术从甘蓝型油菜中克隆了一个编码G蛋白β亚基基因的全长cDNA,命名为BnAGB1.BnAGB1含有1134 bp的完整开放阅读框,编码378个氨基酸,与其它植物的Gβ亚基氨基酸序列有很高的同源性,且具有保守的Gα、Gγ结合区域及WD-40结构域.对甘蓝型油菜矮化突变体及其野生型中不同组织和不同发育时期的BnAGB1表达进行实时定量PCR分析表明:BnAGB1在矮化突变体和野生型的各个组织中均有表达;在生长旺盛期的子叶期、抽薹期和荚果期有较高的表达,而在两片真叶期、四片真叶期和花期表达较低;而且,在所有分析的不同时期和组织中,矮化突变体中的表达均显著或极显著高于野生型.以上结果表明,BnAGB1参与了甘蓝型油菜的生长发育进程的调控,与油菜矮化突变性状表现可能相关.     

金属硫蛋白突变体的烟草植物高效表达载体探讨

金属硫蛋白通常由α和β两个结构域组成,其中α的结构域构成包括Cd~(2+)和Hg~(2+),小鼠突变体则在大肠杆菌中进行搭建,并获得了转基因植株。为了更好地增强外源基因在烟草中的表达效果,可以在基因起始密码子ATG附近融入适合植物需要的碱基组合AACAATG,这种组合有利于将突变体基因插入具有35S强启动子的植物双元表达载体p GPTVd35S-BAR中,并获得αα突变体的植物双元表达载体。在该次研究中,将采用PCR-Southern和蛋白Dot-blotting检测方法,证明αα突变体可以在烟草中良好地表达。同时,在抗重金属的实验中证明转基因烟草能够在Cd400中良好的生长。     

番茄SlWRKY1转录因子在植物生物和非生物胁迫中的调控

克隆番茄SlWRKY1基因,构建植物过量表达载体pBI121-35S∷SlWRKY1并通过农杆菌介导的遗传转化法转化番茄,成功获得3株过量表达的转基因植株.研究发现:转基因植株对丁香假单胞菌番茄变种(Pst DC3000)的感染表现出敏感性,表明SlWRKY1基因可以减弱由Pst DC3000引起的植物防御反应,在相关信号通路中起到负调控作用.同时SlWRKY1转基因植株对盐胁迫表现出抗逆性,在胁迫条件下转基因植物中积累了大量的脯氨酸.推测SlWRKY1基因可能参与番茄脯氨酸代谢调控.     

过量表达URO基因抑制拟南芥次生细胞壁开关基因表达

植物次生细胞壁的发育受到一系列转录调控因子的调节.但关于这一过程如何与植物整体发育相整合,一直少有报道.拟南芥URO(UP-RIGHT ROSETTE)基因过量表达导致在相应突变体uro中自由态生长素浓度明显升高,并导致该突变体中次生细胞壁发育减弱.本研究利用突变体uro及其杂合子uro/+,通过定量PCR的方法,检测了一系列调控植物次生细胞壁分化相关基因的表达情况.结果表明,在uro/uro和uro/+中,植物次生细胞壁发育开关基因的表达受到明显抑制,而对于木质部导管细胞分化的开关基因没有明显影响.因此,URO基因是介导植物细胞壁次生加厚与植物生长发育状态关联的基因,URO基因通过抑制次生细胞壁发育达到维持细胞的生长状态的效果.     

拟南芥开花基因FT对根毛生长的影响研究

为进一步研究成花素(FLOWERING LOCUS T,FT)基因对植物营养生长的影响,通过结合qRT-PCR和生理学实验的方式对FT过表达及突变体植株进行比对分析.研究发现,FT过表达植株与野生型相比,其根毛短且稀疏,且具有分叉型、膨大型、波浪型等极性生长缺陷表型;相反,突变体ft-10的根毛相对长且密集,略优于野生型,无极性生长缺陷表型.通过实时定量PCR分析与根毛起始伸长过程相关基因KOAJK、SCN1、RHD2、LRL3、RSL4、RHD6的表达量,FT过表达植株显著低于野生型,而突变体ft-10略高于野生型.结果表明,FT基因在根毛起始伸长过程中起负调控作用,影响根毛的极性生长及数量分布.本研究增加了对FT基因在营养生长过程中功能的认识,同时也为深入研究根系发育的分子机理奠定了基础.     

osRACD基因表达与光敏核不育水稻光周期育性转换的相关性

为检测水稻低分子量GTP结合蛋白编码基因osRACD与光敏核不育水稻农垦58S光周期育性转换的相关性,用农杆菌介导转化和潮霉素抗性筛选获得了大量的转基因水稻植株.通过PCR、Southern杂交、RT-PCR和Northern检测等,证明反义osRACD基因和正义osRACD基因均已分别在转基因农垦58N和58S水稻植株的幼穗中得到了稳定的表达.成熟转基因植株的自交结实率统计分析表明,反义osRACD基因的表达大大降低了转基因58N水稻植株的育性,其平均结实率明显低于对照植株;而正义osRACD基因在转基因58S水稻植株的幼穗中表达后,使得长日下生长的、本来不育的58S植株的育性得到一定程度上的恢复,有的植株的结实率还高于短日下生长的对照植株;而且,osRACD基因表达水平越高的转基因58S植株,其对应的结实率也越高.降低幼穗中内源osRACD基因的表达水平会导致转基因58N水稻植株的育性降低,恢复长日下生长的转基因58S水稻植株幼穗中osRACD基因的表达,则可恢复其育性.这表明,osRACD基因的表达参与了农垦58S光周期育性转换的调控过程.这是第一个报道的参与光信号传导与光敏核不育水稻光周期育性调控的低分子量GTP结合蛋白的编码基因.     

番茄红素ε-环化酶调节烟草抗旱性的研究

类胡萝卜素是一类重要的天然色素,在植物生长发育和抵御逆境的过程中起着重要作用.番茄红素ε-环化酶是类胡萝卜素合成的关键酶,催化番茄红素向α类胡萝卜素的转化.本文以烟草为材料,通过转基因手段分别获得了烟草Ntε-LCY基因的过量表达和基因沉默株系.表型分析结果显示:与野生型植株相比,Ntε-LCY过量表达植株的抗旱能力显著降低,而Ntε-LCY表达沉默株系的抗旱能力明显增强.生理指标测定结果显示:Ntε-LCY过量表达植株叶片的失水效率、活性氧(ROS)含量显著高于野生型植株,而Ntε-LCY沉默株系的生理指标值明显低于野生型植株.这些生理指标值的改变趋势与植株ABA含量的变化趋势相反,表明Ntε-LCY基因可能通过调控ABA含量,影响植株的失水效率和ROS累积,进而调控植物的抗旱性.     

细胞骨架在植物细胞周期进程中的动态变化及其调控?

细胞周期,即细胞生长与分裂的周期,是生命得以世代繁衍而生生不息的基础.真核细胞有丝分裂周期进程调控的分子机制高度保守.其间,微管和微丝骨架进行有规律的动态变化,顺次组成各种细胞生长和分裂装置,主动参与细胞周期进程的调节.然而,高等植物细胞周期不同时相分别有着与动物细胞不完全相同的、独特的细胞骨架列阵.而这些列阵的产生和维持直接依赖于众多细胞骨架结合蛋白以及上游信号分子的调控.本文重点综述了植物细胞周期进程中微管和微丝骨架的动态变化规律以及参与植物细胞骨架动态和有丝分裂装置组装调控的细胞骨架结合蛋白的最新研究进展,同时对细胞骨架在植物细胞周期进程中研究进行总结和展望.     

Ornithine decarboxylase is degraded by the 26S proteasome without ubiquitination.

Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), a key enzyme in polyamine biosynthesis, is the most rapidly turned over mammalian enzyme. We have shown that its degradation is accelerated by ODC antizyme, an inhibitory protein induced by polyamines. This is a new type of enzyme regulation and may be a model for selective protein degradation. Here we report the identification of the protease responsible for ODC degradation. Using a cell-free degradation system, we demonstrate that immunodepletion of proteasomes from cell extracts causes almost complete loss of ATP- and antizyme-dependent degradation of ODC. In addition, purified 26S proteasome complex, but not the 20S proteasome, catalyses ODC degradation in the absence of ubiquitin. These results strongly suggest that the 26S proteasome, widely viewed as specific for ubiquitin-conjugated proteins, is the main enzyme responsible for ODC degradation. The 26S proteasome may therefore have a second role in ubiquitin-independent proteolysis.     

F-box proteins in flowering plants

In eukaryotes, the ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation pathway has been shown to control several key biological processes such as cell division, development, metabolism and immune response. F-box proteins, as a part of SCF (Skp1-Cullin (or Cdc53)-F-box) complex, functioned by interacting with substrate proteins, leading to their subsequent degradation by the 26S proteasome. To date, several F-box proteins identified in Arabidopsis and Antirrhinum have been shown to play important roles in auxin signal transduction, floral organ formation, flowering and leaf senescence. Arabidopsis genome sequence analysis revealed that it encodes over 1000 predicted F-box proteins accounting for about 5% of total predicted proteins. These results indicate that the ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation involving the F-box proteins is an important mechanism controlling plant gene expression. Here, we review the known F-box proteins and their functionsin flowering plants.     

F-box基因FOF2在拟南芥盐和冷胁迫响应中的功能分析

FOF2为F-box蛋白家族成员,其生物学功能尚不清楚.采用实时荧光定量PCR和生理学实验相结合的方法,对FOF2基因的表达模式及其在拟南芥抗盐和冷胁迫响应中的作用进行了分析.研究发现,FOF2在拟南芥根、茎生叶和果荚中表达较高,并且其表达受盐和冷胁迫诱导.FOF2过表达株系对盐胁迫敏感,与野生型相比种子萌发率低、幼苗主根较短;相反,fof2突变体对盐胁迫的敏感性则减弱.FOF2过表达和缺失突变体种子萌发对冷胁迫无响应,但其主根在冷处理中分别比野生型短或者长.盐处理下,FOF2过表达株系中盐胁迫反应相关基因的表达量显著降低,fof2突变体中则升高;冷处理下,FOF2过表达株系中冷胁迫反应相关基因的表达量显著升高,fof2突变体中则降低.结果表明,FOF2在植物抗盐胁迫响应中起负调控作用,在抗冷胁迫响应中则可能起正调控作用.     

A cryptic protease couples deubiquitination and degradation by the proteasome

The 26S proteasome is responsible for most intracellular proteolysis in eukaryotes. Efficient substrate recognition relies on conjugation of substrates with multiple ubiquitin molecules and recognition of the polyubiquitin moiety by the 19S regulatory complex--a multisubunit assembly that is bound to either end of the cylindrical 20S proteasome core. Only unfolded proteins can pass through narrow axial channels into the central proteolytic chamber of the 20S core, so the attached polyubiquitin chain must be released to allow full translocation of the substrate polypeptide. Whereas unfolding is rate-limiting for the degradation of some substrates and appears to involve chaperone-like activities associated with the proteasome, the importance and mechanism of degradation-associated deubiquitination has remained unclear. Here we report that the POH1 (also known as Rpn11 in yeast) subunit of the 19S complex is responsible for substrate deubiquitination during proteasomal degradation. The inability to remove ubiquitin can be rate-limiting for degradation in vitro and is lethal to yeast. Unlike all other known deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) that are cysteine proteases, POH1 appears to be a Zn(2+)-dependent protease.     

NaCl胁迫对菠菜萌发和苗期生理特性的影响

以3个菠菜(Spinacia oleracea L.)自交系材料S26,S77和S4为研究对象,研究了不同浓度的NaCl溶液对菠菜萌发期和幼苗期生理特性的影响.结果表明:供试浓度范围内,低浓度(50 mmol?L-1)NaCl处理可以促进菠菜种子的萌发,但高浓度处理则抑制萌发;与S4相比,S77和S26在NaCl胁迫下...     

The BTB protein MEL-26 is a substrate-specific adaptor of the CUL-3 ubiquitin-ligase

Many biological processes, such as development and cell cycle progression are tightly controlled by selective ubiquitin-dependent degradation of key substrates. In this pathway, the E3-ligase recognizes the substrate and targets it for degradation by the 26S proteasome. The SCF (Skp1-Cul1-F-box) and ECS (Elongin C-Cul2-SOCS box) complexes are two well-defined cullin-based E3-ligases. The cullin subunits serve a scaffolding function and interact through their C terminus with the RING-finger-containing protein Hrt1/Roc1/Rbx1, and through their N terminus with Skp1 or Elongin C, respectively. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the ubiquitin-ligase activity of the CUL-3 complex is required for degradation of the microtubule-severing protein MEI-1/katanin at the meiosis-to-mitosis transition. However, the molecular composition of this cullin-based E3-ligase is not known. Here we identified the BTB-containing protein MEL-26 as a component required for degradation of MEI-1 in vivo. Importantly, MEL-26 specifically interacts with CUL-3 and MEI-1 in vivo and in vitro, and displays properties of a substrate-specific adaptor. Our results suggest that BTB-containing proteins may generally function as substrate-specific adaptors in Cul3-based E3-ubiquitin ligases.     

A heterodimeric complex that promotes the assembly of mammalian 20S proteasomes

The 26S proteasome is a multisubunit protease responsible for regulated proteolysis in eukaryotic cells. It comprises one catalytic 20S proteasome and two axially positioned 19S regulatory complexes. The 20S proteasome is composed of 28 subunits arranged in a cylindrical particle as four heteroheptameric rings, alpha1-7beta1-7beta1-7alpha1-7 (refs 4, 5), but the mechanism responsible for the assembly of such a complex structure remains elusive. Here we report two chaperones, designated proteasome assembling chaperone-1 (PAC1) and PAC2, that are involved in the maturation of mammalian 20S proteasomes. PAC1 and PAC2 associate as heterodimers with proteasome precursors and are degraded after formation of the 20S proteasome is completed. Overexpression of PAC1 or PAC2 accelerates the formation of precursor proteasomes, whereas knockdown by short interfering RNA impairs it, resulting in poor maturation of 20S proteasomes. Furthermore, the PAC complex provides a scaffold for alpha-ring formation and keeps the alpha-rings competent for the subsequent formation of half-proteasomes. Thus, our results identify a mechanism for the correct assembly of 20S proteasomes.