Cholera toxin structure, gene regulation and pathophysiological and immunological aspects

Many notions regarding the function, structure and regulation of cholera toxin expression have remained essentially unaltered in the last 15 years. At the same time, recent findings have generated additional perspectives. For example, the cholera toxin genes are now known to be carried by a non-lytic bacteriophage, a previously unsuspected condition. Understanding of how the expression of cholera toxin genes is controlled by the bacterium at the molecular level has advanced significantly and relationships with cell-density-associated (quorum-sensing) responses have recently been discovered. Regarding the cell intoxication process, the mode of entry and intracellular transport of cholera toxin are becoming clearer. In the immunological field, the strong oral immunogenicity of the non-toxic B subunit of cholera toxin (CTB) has been exploited in the development of a now widely licensed oral cholera vaccine. Additionally, CTB has been shown to induce tolerance against co-administered (linked) foreign antigens in some autoimmune and allergic diseases. Received 25 October 2007; accepted 12 December 2007     

中国人HLA-G1的cDNA克隆、序列分析、表达和蛋白质空间结构预测

从中国人外周血单个核细胞、胎盘组织和肝癌组织等样品中克隆了包含完整HLA-G1读框的cDNA;与国外同行获得的该基因及其蛋白质序列比较分析表明,该基因虽然有着细微的种族特异性,但高度保守;并获得了它的截断型重组蛋白,根据蛋白一级结构和同源比较方法,模建了它及其与特异性受体KIR2DL4形成复合体的空间结构模拟,预测了它们之间相互作用的特征.     

导入蓖麻毒蛋白的供体淋巴细胞在小鼠皮肤移植中产生的特异免疫耐受

以小鼠为研究对象进行皮肤移植,受体为BALB/C鼠,供体为C₅₇BL/6鼠。用氯化钙介导蓖麻毒蛋白(ricin)进入供体鼠的脾细胞制成毒细胞,适时地注入受体体内。带有蓖麻毒蛋白供体脾细胞,一方面可提供特异移植抗原(主要组织相容性抗原)使特异的T,B淋巴细胞识;另一方面,它被识别裂解后,释放蓖麻毒蛋白,又可杀伤与其识别的T,B淋巴细胞,使受体对供体移植物产生耐受。实验共设两组,在皮肤移植前后分别用包埋蓖麻毒蛋白的供体脾细胞处理,两组移植皮片存活时间均比相应对照组有显著延长(t＞t_0.01)。混合淋巴细胞培养实验和淋巴细胞转化实验证明了实验组对供体细胞的免疫应答及免疫细胞的分化能力均受到抑制。对这一新设想进行了初步的研究。