Mutations in NMNAT1 cause Leber congenital amaurosis and identify a new disease pathway for retinal degeneration

Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is a blinding retinal disease that presents within the first year after birth. Using exome sequencing, we identified mutations in the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) synthase gene NMNAT1 encoding nicotinamide mononucleotide adenylyltransferase 1 in eight families with LCA, including the family in which LCA was originally linked to the LCA9 locus. Notably, all individuals with NMNAT1 mutations also have macular colobomas, which are severe degenerative entities of the central retina (fovea) devoid of tissue and photoreceptors. Functional assays of the proteins encoded by the mutant alleles identified in our study showed that the mutations reduce the enzymatic activity of NMNAT1 in NAD biosynthesis and affect protein folding. Of note, recent characterization of the slow Wallerian degeneration (Wld(s)) mouse model, in which prolonged axonal survival after injury is observed, identified NMNAT1 as a neuroprotective protein when ectopically expressed. Our findings identify a new disease mechanism underlying LCA and provide the first link between endogenous NMNAT1 dysfunction and a human nervous system disorder.     

开放式同行评议模式的介绍与思考

介绍了国外在这方面的最新研究成果和应用经验,同时结合国内科技界的情况,探讨了如何在我国进行开放式同行评议模式的实践,以便让科技评价研究和管理人员尽快了解、吸收该领域的前沿知识,并在此基础上进行更深入的研究与实践,进一步提高我国科技评价的质量。     

Frequent mutations of chromatin remodeling genes in transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder

Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) is the most common type of bladder cancer. Here we sequenced the exomes of nine individuals with TCC and screened all the somatically mutated genes in a prevalence set of 88 additional individuals with TCC with different tumor stages and grades. In our study, we discovered a variety of genes previously unknown to be mutated in TCC. Notably, we identified genetic aberrations of the chromatin remodeling genes (UTX, MLL-MLL3, CREBBP-EP300, NCOR1, ARID1A and CHD6) in 59% of our 97 subjects with TCC. Of these genes, we showed UTX to be altered substantially more frequently in tumors of low stages and grades, highlighting its potential role in the classification and diagnosis of bladder cancer. Our results provide an overview of the genetic basis of TCC and suggest that aberration of chromatin regulation might be a hallmark of bladder cancer.     

Common variants at MS4A4/MS4A6E, CD2AP, CD33 and EPHA1 are associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease

The Alzheimer Disease Genetics Consortium (ADGC) performed a genome-wide association study of late-onset Alzheimer disease using a three-stage design consisting of a discovery stage (stage 1) and two replication stages (stages 2 and 3). Both joint analysis and meta-analysis approaches were used. We obtained genome-wide significant results at MS4A4A (rs4938933; stages 1 and 2, meta-analysis P (P(M)) = 1.7 × 10(-9), joint analysis P (P(J)) = 1.7 × 10(-9); stages 1, 2 and 3, P(M) = 8.2 × 10(-12)), CD2AP (rs9349407; stages 1, 2 and 3, P(M) = 8.6 × 10(-9)), EPHA1 (rs11767557; stages 1, 2 and 3, P(M) = 6.0 × 10(-10)) and CD33 (rs3865444; stages 1, 2 and 3, P(M) = 1.6 × 10(-9)). We also replicated previous associations at CR1 (rs6701713; P(M) = 4.6 × 10(-10), P(J) = 5.2 × 10(-11)), CLU (rs1532278; P(M) = 8.3 × 10(-8), P(J) = 1.9 × 10(-8)), BIN1 (rs7561528; P(M) = 4.0 × 10(-14), P(J) = 5.2 × 10(-14)) and PICALM (rs561655; P(M) = 7.0 × 10(-11), P(J) = 1.0 × 10(-10)), but not at EXOC3L2, to late-onset Alzheimer's disease susceptibility.     

掘进机新型液压油箱的设计与应用

液压油液的温升与污染是制约液压系统可靠性与液压元件寿命的关键。为了减小因油箱的设计缺陷而引起的油液污染速度快,温升高的问题,对EBZ230掘进机泵站闭式油箱进行改进设计。通过样机的应用与实验证明了这种新型的油箱系统能更有效地降低油液的污染速度与等级、更平稳更快速地冷却油液,对提高整机液压系统可靠性与稳定性有非常积极的意义。该油箱结构亦可应用于有着相似要求的液压设备中,具有较高的推广价值。     

三家子矿6-2煤层瓦斯地质规律研究

通过对南票三家子煤矿瓦斯地质资料的分析,并结合煤层瓦斯含量的现场测定和实验室测试,探讨了断层、构造凹地、煤层围岩、含煤岩系沉积环境以及岩浆侵入等地质因素对6-2煤层瓦斯赋存、分布的影响;夯析了各因素与瓦斯含量的关系,即断层、岩浆侵入破坏了煤体的结构,构造凹地引起的压性应力导致6-2煤层区域性渗透率下降,这些因素对瓦斯的逸散均起了阻碍的作用,因此是影响瓦斯赋存的主控因素。绘制出瓦斯含量等值线图,进而为采掘布置和瓦斯防治工作提供了理论依据。     

单纯及丙泊酚联合电休克对抑郁大鼠海马TNF—α表达的影响

目的探讨单纯电休克及丙泊酚联合电休克对抑郁大鼠电休克治疗效果及海马内TNF-α表达的影响。方法50只成年Wistar大鼠随机分为5组（n=10）：正常对照组（C组）、抑郁组（D组）、单纯丙泊酚组（DP组）、单纯电休克组（E组）、丙泊酚联合电休克组（M组）。C组正常饲养,其余采用经典的慢性不可预见性应激法建立抑郁模型。建模成功后,E组直接行电休克治疗,M组腹腔注射丙泊酚90mg／kg,麻醉产生效应后行电休克治疗,每日进行以上处理1次,连续7日。以Open—field法和糖水消耗实验进行行为学评分。实验完成后处死大鼠,用免疫组化染色法检测TNF—α受体蛋白的表达;ELISA法海马TNF-α的含量,RT-PCR法测海马TNF—α mRNA表达。结果E组和M组大鼠的行为学评分高于D组和DP组,且M组高于E组（P〈0．05）;D组和DP组海马内TNF-α含量以及mRNA的表达高于其它各组（P〈0．05）,M组海马内TNF—α含量以及mRNA的表达低于E组（P〈0．05）,与C组差异无统计学意义（P〉0．05）;D组和DP组海马区TNF-α受体表达量低于C组（P〈0．05）,M组的表达量接近于C组,但高于E组（P〈0．05）。结论慢性应激使大鼠海马内TNF—α含量升高及其受体表达下调,从而产生抑郁症。丙泊酚可以改善电休克抑郁症状可能与进一步下调抑郁大鼠海马内TNF—α的含量和上调其受体表达有关。     

外汇欧式期权在市场不完备下的对冲误差分析

本文研究了外汇欧式期权的对冲误差问题,针对典型的静态和动态Delta对冲策略,在对冲过程不连续和利率平价公式不成立的市场不完备情形下,给出了即期对冲和远期对冲的对冲误差公式,从而能够更准确地衡量实际对冲组合产生的风险.在研究Delta对冲策略过程中,本文提出了一个包含摩擦系数ε的外汇远期汇率模型,并通过分析即期对冲和远期对冲的差异,给出了最优对冲方式的判别条件.该判别条件依赖于摩擦系数ε,做市商仅通过对摩擦系数ε实时的监控,便可以选择最优的风险对冲方式,从而提高了对冲效率.本文提出的对冲误差的具体解析式和最优对冲方式的判别条件为外汇期权对冲及其风险管理提供了理论依据.实证结果表明,本文提出的期望收益差与实际对冲组合的收益差基本一致,从而验证了判别条件的合理性.     

Nine new species of the subgenus Stegana (Oxyphortica) from the Oriental region,with morphological and molecular evidence based on Chinese species (Diptera: Drosophilidae)

Nine new species of the subgenus Stegana (Oxyphortica) have been discovered from the Oriental Region: S. (O.) chuanjiangi Zhang and Chen, sp. nov., S (O.) dainuo Wang and Chen, sp. nov., S. (O.) dawa Zhang and Chen, sp. nov., S. (O.) laohlie Zhang and Chen, sp. nov., S. (O.) luchun Wang and Chen, sp. nov., S. (O.) mengwan Wang and Chen, sp. nov., S. (O.) triodonta Cheng and Chen, sp. nov. from southern China; S. (O.) dehiscens Cheng and Chen, sp. nov. and S. (O.) spinosa Cheng and Chen, sp. nov. from eastern Malaysia. One newly recorded species from China: S. (O.) maichouensis Sidorenko is re-described. The DNA sequences of the mitochondrial COI gene with BOLD Process ID and GenBank accession numbers are provided for the above seven new species and five known species from China: S. (O.) acutipenis Xu, Gao and Chen, S. (O.) adentata Toda and Peng, S. (O.) hirtipenis Xu, Gao and Chen, S. (O.) latipenis Xu, Gao and Chen, and S. (O.) maichouensis Sidorenko. Intra- and interspecific pairwise K-2P distances among these species are summarized and the phylogenetic relationships are reconstructed based on the neighbour-joining (NJ) analyses.

www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:2FA403F6-5535-40A4-9FD0-ADB9913EDE83.     

Germline-specific dgcr8 knockout in zebrafish using a BACK approach

Zebrafish is an important model to study developmental biology and human diseases. However, an effective approach to achieve spatial and temporal gene knockout in zebrafish has not been well established. In this study, we have developed a new approach, namely bacterial artificial chromosome-rescue-based knockout (BACK), to achieve conditional gene knockout in zebrafish using the Cre/loxP system. We have successfully deleted the DiGeorge syndrome critical region gene 8 (dgcr8) in zebrafish germ line and demonstrated that the maternal-zygotic dgcr8 (MZdgcr8) embryos exhibit MZdicer-like phenotypes with morphological defects which could be rescued by miR-430, indicating that canonical microRNAs play critical role in early development. Our findings establish that Cre/loxP-mediated tissue-specific gene knockout could be achieved using this BACK strategy and that canonical microRNAs play important roles in early embryonic development in zebrafish.