实时荧光定量PCR检测原发性肝癌中hNTKL-BP1基因的表达

分别提取手术切除人原发性HCC肝癌和癌旁肝组织总RNA并逆转录为cDNA,在hNTKL-BP1基因的高保守区设计相应引物和Taqman荧光探针,实时检测PCR产物的荧光强度,采用2-△△Ct方法分析比较该基因在人类肝癌组织和癌旁肝组织中的表达差异.结果是44例原发性HCC肝癌组织中hNTKL-BP1基因表达水平显著高于癌旁肝组织(t=2.69,P<0.01),肝癌组织与癌旁肝组织hNTKL-BP1基因表达差异和肿瘤大小有一定的相关性(P=0.028),hNTKL-BP1基因可能与肝癌的发生、发展有一定相关性.     

苏云金杆菌晶体蛋白Cyt1A对营养期杀虫蛋白Vip3A杀虫毒力的影响

为检测苏云金杆菌晶体蛋白Cyt1A对Vip3A表达和杀虫活性的影响,将p20和cyt1A基因与vip3A基因连接构建了重组质粒pHVC20,然后电激转化至苏云金杆菌无晶体突变株CryB中进行了共表达,以单独表达Vip3A蛋白的CryB(pHPT3)作为对照菌株。Westernblot结果显示,Vip3A蛋白在CryB(pHVC20)菌株中的最大表达量约为在CryB(pHPT3)菌株的2倍,这可能是由于前者中的辅助蛋白P20增加了Vip3A表达量的缘故,晶体蛋白Cyt1A的存在对Vip3A的正常表达没有影响。生物测定结果表明,CryB(pHVC20)和CryB(pHPT3)菌株对斜纹夜蛾初孵幼虫的LC50值分别为10.62!g/ml和78!g/ml,前者的毒力比后者提高了6倍,这表明Cyt1A蛋白和Vip3A蛋白对目标昆虫的毒力可能存在着协同增效作用。     

用AFM观察小白鼠心肌核DNA片段的基因体外转录和垃圾DNA的相互作用

用AFM直接观察、体外转录等实验技术组合,发现小白鼠(Balb/C)心肌体外转录状态的核DNA片段上的各种基因,处于垃圾DNA的特定的“转录平台”上。“转录平台”上的各种核活性基因的两端的调控序列,分别与特定开关蛋白质复合体结合(即可解离的开关蛋白质),中间的编码序列分别以非共价键特异结合可完全解离的转录活性因子等多种蛋白质;这些与核基因转录相关的蛋白质均由垃圾DNA的专一性蛋白质通路分别进行特异性正负反馈调控。     

燃气发电机组蒸发器上不明结垢物的分析及解决对策

金属腐蚀和结垢问题常常发生在大型燃气轮机组设备上,影响整个装置的正常运行,运用扫描电镜(SEM)、X射线衍射(XRD)、能谱分析(EDS)、热失重分析(TGA)和等离子发射光谱(ICP)等分析测试技术,表征和分析了上海宝钢股份有限公司的燃气轮机组蒸发器上的不明结垢物.结果表明,该结垢物的主要成分为碱式硫酸铁的混合物,腐蚀类型为高温硫腐蚀,还探讨了发生高温硫化腐蚀的原因与机理,并提出相应的解决方案.     

日粮蛋白质水平对鹅生长性能及肉质的影响

选取28日龄、体重相近的合浦灰鹅60只,随机分为3个组,采用精料 青料(黑麦草等)混合的方式进行饲喂试验,试验期为42天。第70d采血测定血清中尿素氮、转氨酶活性、血脂和脂蛋白等生化指标,并进行屠宰测定和肌肉营养成分含量测定。试验结果表明:(1)生长前期(28~49日龄),第2组日增重较高,各组间差异不显著(P>0.05);生长后期(50~70日龄)第1组日增重较高,各组间差异不显著(P>0.05)。(2)鹅的血清尿素氮含量随饲粮粗蛋白质水平的降低而下降(P<0.05);血清转氨酶活性、脂类和脂蛋白含量等组间无显著差异。(3)饲粮粗蛋白质水平对肉鹅屠宰性能无显著影响,鹅肉中的干物质、粗蛋白质、氨基酸总量、必需氨基酸总量、肌内脂肪、肌苷酸含量与蛋白质有正相关,各组间差异不显著(P>0.05),随着蛋白质水平提高,肌肉的营养和风味有改善的趋势。     

Modulation of protein biophysical properties by chemical glycosylation: biochemical insights and biomedical implications

Glycosylation constitutes one of the most important posttranslational modifications employed by biological systems to modulate protein biophysical properties. Due to the direct biochemical and biomedical implications of achieving control over protein stability and function by chemical means, there has been great interest in recent years towards the development of chemical strategies for protein glycosylation. Since current knowledge about glycoprotein biophysics has been mainly derived from the study of naturally glycosylated proteins, chemical glycosylation provides novel insights into its mechanistic understanding by affording control over glycosylation parameters. This review presents a survey of the effects that natural and chemical glycosylation have on the fundamental biophysical properties of proteins (structure, dynamics, stability, and function). This is complemented by a mechanistic discussion of how glycans achieve such effects and discussion of the implications of employing chemical glycosylation as a tool to exert control over protein biophysical properties within biochemical and biomedical applications. Received 15 December 2006; received after revision 28 March 2007; accepted 25 April 2007     

Developing pharmacological therapies for Alzheimer disease

Alzheimer disease (AD), while chronic and progressive with an average progression of 7 – 10 years, is both multifactorial and heterogeneous. Thus, AD offers a large window of opportunity and a large number of therapeutic targets to inhibit it. The selection of a therapeutic target, however, is one of the biggest challenges in developing a pharmacological treatment of this multifactorial disease. Inhibition of a pivotal downstream event is likely to benefit more patients than inhibition of an upstream event in AD pathogenesis. Neurofibrillary degeneration of abnormally hyperphosphorylated tau offers such a pivotal therapeutic target. Abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau and not its aggregation into filaments appears to be the most deleterious step in neurofibrillary degeneration. Tau can be abnormally hyperphosphorylated by downregulation of protein phosphatase-2A activity or by upregulation of more than one tau kinase. Restoration of the phosphatase activity which is downregulated in AD brain or inhibition of GSK-3β and cdk5, which are required for AD-type abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau, are among the most promising therapeutic strategies.     

Regulation of insulin receptor function

Resistance to the biological actions of insulin contributes to the development of type 2 diabetes and risk of cardiovascular disease. A reduced biological response to insulin by tissues results from an impairment in the cascade of phosphorylation events within cells that regulate the activity of enzymes comprising the insulin signaling pathway. In most models of insulin resistance, there is evidence that this decrement in insulin signaling begins with either the activation or substrate kinase activity of the insulin receptor (IR), which is the only component of the pathway that is unique to insulin action. Activation of the IR can be impaired by post-translational modifications of the protein involving serine phosphorylation, or by binding to inhibiting proteins such as PC-1 or members of the SOCS or Grb protein families. The impact of these processes on the conformational changes and phosphorylation events required for full signaling activity, as well as the role of these mechanisms in human disease, is reviewed in this article. Received 3 August 2006; received after revision 1 December 2006; accepted 8 January 2007     

Receptor communication within the lymphocyte plasma membrane: a role for the thrombospondin family of matricellular proteins

Lymphocytes, the principal cells of the immune system, carry out immune surveillance throughout the body by their unique capacity to constantly reposition themselves between a free-floating vascular state and a tissue state characterized by migration and frequent adhesive interactions with endothelial cells and components of the extracellular matrix. Therefore, mechanisms co-ordinating adhesion and migration with signals delivered through antigen recognition probably play a pivotal role for the regulation of lymphocyte behaviour and function. Endogenous thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) seems to be the hub in such a mechanism for autocrine regulation of T cell adhesion and migration. TSP-1 functions as a mediator of cis interaction of vital receptors within the T lymphocyte plasma membrane, including integrins, low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein, calreticulin and integrin-associated protein. Received 1 June 2006; received after revision 28 June 2006; accepted 11 October 2006