Type I interferons (IFN) are well studied cytokines with anti-viral and immune-modulating functions. Type I IFNsare produced following viral infections, but until recently, the mechanisms of viral recognition leading ...Type I interferons (IFN) are well studied cytokines with anti-viral and immune-modulating functions. Type I IFNsare produced following viral infections, but until recently, the mechanisms of viral recognition leading to IFN productionwere largely unknown. Toll like receptors (TLRs) have emerged as key transducers of type I IFN during viral infectionsby recognizing various viral components. Furthermore, much progress has been made in defining the signaling path-ways downstream of TLRs for type I IFN production. TLR7 and TLR9 have become apparent as universally importantin inducing type I IFN during infection with most viruses, particularly by plasmacytoid dendritic cells. New intracellularviral pattern recognition receptors leading to type I IFN production have been identified. Many bacteria can also inducethe up-regulation of these cytokines. Interestingly, recent studies have found a detrimental effect on host cells if type IIFN is produced during infection with the intracellular gram-positive bacterial pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes. Thisreview will discuss the recent advances made in defining the signaling pathways leading to type I IFN production.展开更多
Glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) is responsible for insulin-stimulated glucose transporting into the insulin-sensitive fat and muscle cells. The dynamics of GLUT4 storage vesicles (GSVs) remains to be explored and it is ...Glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) is responsible for insulin-stimulated glucose transporting into the insulin-sensitive fat and muscle cells. The dynamics of GLUT4 storage vesicles (GSVs) remains to be explored and it is unclear how GSVs are arranged based on their mobility. We examined this issue in 3T3-L1 cells via investigating the three-dimensional mobility of single GSV labeled with EGFP-fused GLUT4. A thin layer of cytosol right adjacent to the plasma membrane was illuminated and successively imaged at 5 Hz under a total internal reflection fluorescence microscope with a penetration depth of 136 nm. Employing single particle tracking, the three-dimensional subpixel displacement of single GSV was tracked at a spatial precision of 22 nm. Both the mean square displacement and the diffusion coefficient were calculated for each vesicle. Tracking results revealed that vesicles moved as if restricted within a cage that has a mean radius of 160 nm, suggesting the presence of some intracellular tethering matrix. By constructing the histogram of the diffusion coefficients of GSVs, we observed a smooth distribution instead of the existence of distinct groups. The result indicates that GSVs are dynamically retained in a continuous and wide range of mobility rather than into separate classes.展开更多
Ixeris chinesis (Thunb.) Ankai has been used as a Chinese folk medicine, but only scanty information is available on the physiological and biochemical functions of the compounds extracted from I. chinesis. In the pre...Ixeris chinesis (Thunb.) Ankai has been used as a Chinese folk medicine, but only scanty information is available on the physiological and biochemical functions of the compounds extracted from I. chinesis. In the present study the effects of apigenin -7-glucoside (APIG) isolated from I. chinesis against liver injury caused by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) were investigated. Methods The contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT), and reduced glutathione (GSH) were evaluated by spectrophotography. The content of 8-Hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) was measured with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) equipped with electrochemical and UV detection methods. The antioxidant activity of APIG was evaluated using chemiluminescence single photon counting technology. Results CCl4 significantly increased the enzyme activities of GPT and GOT in blood serum, as well as the level of MDA and 8-OHdG in liver tissue, and decreased the levels of GSH. Pretreatment with APIG was able not only to suppress the elevation of GPT, GOT, MDA and 8-OHdG, and inhibit the reduction of GSH in a dose-dependent manner in vivo, but also to reduce the damage of hepatocytes in vitro. On the other hand, we also found that APIG had strong antioxidant activity against reactive oxygen species (ROS) in vitro in a concentration-dependent manner. Conclusion The hepatoprotective activity of APIG is possibly due to its antioxidant properties, acting as scavengers of ROS. These results obtained in vivo and in vitro suggest that APIG has protective effects against hepatic oxidative injury induced by chemicals. Further studies on the pharmaceutical functions and immunological responses of APIG may help its clinical application.展开更多
A large class of non-coding RNAs found in small molecule RNAs are closely associated with the regula-tion of gene expression, which are called microRNA (miRNA). MiRNAs are coded in intergenic or intronic regions and c...A large class of non-coding RNAs found in small molecule RNAs are closely associated with the regula-tion of gene expression, which are called microRNA (miRNA). MiRNAs are coded in intergenic or intronic regions and can be formed into foldback hairpin RNAs. These transcripts are cleaved by Dicer, generating mature miRNAs that can silence their target genes in different modes of action. Now, research on small molecule RNAs has gotten breakthrough advance in biology. To discover miRNA genes and their target genes has become hot topics in RNA research. This review attempts to look back the history of miRNA discovery, to introduce the methods of screening miRNAs, to localize miRNA loci in genome, to seek miRNA target genes and the biological func-tion, and to discuss the working mechanisms of miRNAs. Finally, we will discuss the potential important roles of miRNAs in modulating the genesis, development, growth, and differentiation of organisms. Thus, it can be predicted that a complete understanding of miRNA functions will bring us some new concepts, approaches and strategies for the study of living beings.展开更多
The retained curve in one-trial passive avoidance task (OTPAT) of day-old chicks hatching from natural geomagnetic field (control groups) is consistent with the acknowledged three-phase model. The two dips are at the ...The retained curve in one-trial passive avoidance task (OTPAT) of day-old chicks hatching from natural geomagnetic field (control groups) is consistent with the acknowledged three-phase model. The two dips are at the 20th min and the 60 min, and the avoidance rates (AR) to the red bead in short- and intermediate-term memory are 68.4% on average, while that in the long-term momory was 74.8%. The OTPAT retained curve of day-old chicks hatching from hypomagnetic field space (experimental groups) presents the marked timing effect. The two dips were at the 25th min and the 50th min, the avoidance rates to the red bead (ARR) in the short- and intermediate-term memory was 74.1% on an average, which was resembled to that in control group; however, the long-term memory appeared an obvious fluctuation. Compared with that in control groups, ARR and the deviation coefficient in experimental groups were decreased by 25.3% and increased by 1.3 times, respectively. That is to say, both the memory ability and stability in the experimental chicks declined. The result shows that the hypomagnetic field space has a negative effect on the development of chick brain function, and that cannot be negligible.展开更多
The purified thermophilic bacterium PS3 F1β10×His-tag is inserted into the F0F1-ATP synthases of chromatophores isolated from photosynthetic bacteria Rhodospirillum rubrum. The studies of biochemical properties ...The purified thermophilic bacterium PS3 F1β10×His-tag is inserted into the F0F1-ATP synthases of chromatophores isolated from photosynthetic bacteria Rhodospirillum rubrum. The studies of biochemical properties of the hybrid chromatophores show that they have both protons-driving capability and photophosphorylation. The fluorescent actin filaments, as a marker of its orientation by video-microscopic experiment, are connected via Maleimido-C3-NTA to the reconstituted β10×His-tag of F0F1-ATP synthases.The clockwise rotation of FoFt-ATP synthases driven by light is observed directly when viewed from the Fo side to Ft. This system should be valuable for further studying the coupling property of F0F1-ATP synthase.展开更多
To investigate the effects of short-term intra- ocular pressure (IOP) elevation on the receptive field proper- ties of lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) cells, responses of the LGN cells to annulus, disc and drifting g...To investigate the effects of short-term intra- ocular pressure (IOP) elevation on the receptive field proper- ties of lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) cells, responses of the LGN cells to annulus, disc and drifting gratings with high or low spatial frequencies have been recorded extracellularly in the cat with the retinal perfusion pressure kept stable (30 mmHg). Our results indicated that the responses of the X and Y type LGN cells were significantly weakened during IOP elevation. And the responses varied with the different mechanisms of receptive fields. Specifically, while using an- nulus and disc as stimuli, the responses of Y cells were more tolerant than X cells to IOP elevation. The surround area of the receptive field was more sensitive to IOP elevation than the center. The mean responses during IOP elevation de- creased more than the peak responses did. IOP elevation has more influence on the responses of X cells than on the re- sponse of Y cells to the drifting gratings with high spatial frequency. These results may reflect different degrees of ischemia on corresponding retinal structures caused by IOP elevation.展开更多
Topography of acoustic response characteris-tics of the midbrain inferior colliculus (IC) of the Kunming mouse was studied by using extracellular recording tech-niques. The characteristic frequency (CF) range represen...Topography of acoustic response characteris-tics of the midbrain inferior colliculus (IC) of the Kunming mouse was studied by using extracellular recording tech-niques. The characteristic frequency (CF) range represented in the different divisions of the IC differed markedly: 4—15 kHz in the dorsal cortex (DC), 10—70 kHz in the centralnucleus (CN), and 4—35 kHz in the external cortex (EC).The CF in the CN increased from dorsal and lateral to ven-tral and medial, higher CFs represented at its ventromedial part and lower CFs at its dorsal part. The isofrequency con-tours of CFs were incurvate. Minimum thresholds (MT) ofthe auditory neurons in DC and the central part of CN were lower (about 10 dB SPL), but considerably higher in thedorsal and ventral region of EC. Results suggest that each of the divisions in the mouse IC may have different auditory functions.展开更多
In the present study, we have developed the method brought forward recently for protein design based on the relative entropy. The new approach can be used in more common situation other than the special limits in the ...In the present study, we have developed the method brought forward recently for protein design based on the relative entropy. The new approach can be used in more common situation other than the special limits in the anterior method. The results indicate that our generalized method has increased the prediction precision for protein sequence and will be in favor of the study for protein design.展开更多
By means of a particular two-tone stimulationparadigm in combination of using a pair of electrodes forsimultaneously recording from two inferior colliculus (IC)neurons, the current in vivo study is undertaken to explo...By means of a particular two-tone stimulationparadigm in combination of using a pair of electrodes forsimultaneously recording from two inferior colliculus (IC)neurons, the current in vivo study is undertaken to explorethe role of frequency band integration (FBI) in sharpening offrequency tuning in the big brown bat, Eptesicus fuscus.Three major results are found: (1) The paired neurons cor-related to FBI are located not only within the same frequencyfilter bandwidth (FFB), but also across different FFBs. Therelations of their frequency tuning curves (FTCs) are mainlyof two types: the flank-overlapped and overlaid patterns. (2)Although the sharpness of FTCs between paired neurons ismutual, the sharpening efficiency of neurons located withinthe same FFB is higher than that of neurons across FFBs,and the FTCs of neurons with the best frequencies (BF) of 20--30 kHz are most strongly sharpened. (3) The strength ofFBI is weak near the BF but gradually increased with fre-quencies away from the BF of sound stimuli. This suggeststhat the dynamical FBI of the IC neurons located within and across the FFBs might be involved in the formation of func-tional FFB structures.展开更多
A 1-mm in diameter polystyrene bead coated with lectin is trapped by optical tweezers which is formed by a focused laser beam (740 nm). A leucocyte adhered to the bottom of sample cell is chosen to close to the trappe...A 1-mm in diameter polystyrene bead coated with lectin is trapped by optical tweezers which is formed by a focused laser beam (740 nm). A leucocyte adhered to the bottom of sample cell is chosen to close to the trapped bead. When their stable combination is confirmed, the leucocyte is displaced by moving the sample stage. A tether is then formed between the trapped bead and the membrane. The force acting on the tether is measured by a detector equipped on the optical tweezers system. The deformation of the membrane is diverse in different contact conditions. When the contact area is small, the tether is very thin and the force on it is 7.4 pN (10-12 N), while the tether is much thicker un-der a larger contact area and its corresponding force is about 14 pN. It is presumed that the latter is related to the defor-mation of cytoskeleton.展开更多
Earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme component A (EFEa), a protein with dual fibrinolytic activity, is one of the major therapeutically important earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme components. The cDNA fragment encoded the ma-tur...Earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme component A (EFEa), a protein with dual fibrinolytic activity, is one of the major therapeutically important earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme components. The cDNA fragment encoded the ma-ture protein was cloned from earthworm (Eisenia fetida) by the RT-PCR technique. The deduced amino acid sequence of the EFE component A shows high homology with some members of serine proteases trypsin family, and the amino acid residues constituting the active sites are conserved in the EFEa as compared with the other proteins of the trypsin family. The cDNA fragment was subcloned into the expres-sion vector pQE31 and pMAL-c2X of E. coli. The resulting expression plasmids, pQE-efea and pMAL-efea, were used to transform the E. coli strain M15. Recombinant protein bands corresponding with calculated molecular weights were induced. The induced His6-EFEa fusion protein with pQE- efea was accumulated into inclusion body, while the induced MBP-EFEa fusion protein with pMAL-efea was soluble and showed fibrinolytic activities.展开更多
The target molecule of monoclonal antibody AA98 (AA for short) is a new vascular endothelial cell related factor and plays a role in angiogenesis as indicated by the previous data. To investigate its role in angiogene...The target molecule of monoclonal antibody AA98 (AA for short) is a new vascular endothelial cell related factor and plays a role in angiogenesis as indicated by the previous data. To investigate its role in angiogenesis and placentation in primate, we examined its expression in the implantation sites on D17, 19, 28 and 34 of gestation in rhesus monkey by immunohistochemistry and Western immunoblot. Western blot analysis showed that the primary antibody used in this study was specific for its epitope. AA protein was mainly expressed in small blood vessels and in some cytotrophoblast cells. The AA staining was found mainly in the endothelial cells and vascular small muscle.This observation supported the AA's role in angiogenesis. AA was spatio-temporarily expressed in cytotrophoblasts: weak in proliferating trophoblast within cell column and endovascular trophoblast, strong in trophoblastic subpopulation within the basal plate and vascular trophoblast; AA staining within the basal plate was down-regulated during early placentation. The shift of AA98 expression in extravillous trophoblasts suggestes a role of this new factor during the course of cytotrophoblast metastasis and spiral artery remodeling. The spatio-temporarily expression indicats that AA98 could be also used as a trophoblast cellular marker to characterize the acquisition of a vascular endothelial and invasive phenotype.展开更多
The 5′/3′ UTRs of mRNA are crucial in translational regulation, and several serious diseases are believed tobe associated with abnormal splicing of these parts of the mRNA sequence. In this work a novel method which...The 5′/3′ UTRs of mRNA are crucial in translational regulation, and several serious diseases are believed tobe associated with abnormal splicing of these parts of the mRNA sequence. In this work a novel method which usessequence alignment database searching for detecting chimeric 5′/3′ UTRs with cross-chromosomal splicing is reported.Eight highly credible instances of cross-chromosomal splicing have been found using this method, representing additional confirmation of the existence of cross-chromosomal splicing events provided by bioinformatics tools. Since noconserved motif has been found in any of the eight instances,and at the same time current prediction algorithms produceonly trivial secondary structures at the "splicing sites", it isnot possible to identify any specific signal leading to the splicing.展开更多
Atomic force microscope was employed to study the surface structure of purple membrane (PM) using contact mode in liquid. The surface structures of native PM and PM partly dissolved by detergent CHAPS were com- pared....Atomic force microscope was employed to study the surface structure of purple membrane (PM) using contact mode in liquid. The surface structures of native PM and PM partly dissolved by detergent CHAPS were com- pared. Results show that 6 mmol/L CHAPS could induce some cracks and holes in PM. While Bateriorhodopsin (BR) was still presented as trimers in the two-dimensional hex- agonal structure. We assume that it was caused by the inter- action between CHAPS micellar and PM. Both absorption spectra and flash photolysis kinetic spectra indicated that BR抯 biochemical functions have been changed.展开更多
基金A. K. Perry is supported by the Howard Hughes Medi-cal Institute predoctoral fellowship (Grant No. 59003787).Part of this work was also supported by National Insti-tutes of Health research grants RO1 CA87924, RO1AI056154, and R37 AI47868 to G. Cheng and from the MajorResearch Plan (30170461, 30430640) +1 种基金Natural ScienceFoundation of China, and the National Basic ResearchProgram of MOST (2002CB513001, 2001CB-510002)H. Tang. H. Tang is also a fellow of Outstanding YoungInvestigators of National Naturual Science Foundation ofChina (30025010).
文摘Type I interferons (IFN) are well studied cytokines with anti-viral and immune-modulating functions. Type I IFNsare produced following viral infections, but until recently, the mechanisms of viral recognition leading to IFN productionwere largely unknown. Toll like receptors (TLRs) have emerged as key transducers of type I IFN during viral infectionsby recognizing various viral components. Furthermore, much progress has been made in defining the signaling path-ways downstream of TLRs for type I IFN production. TLR7 and TLR9 have become apparent as universally importantin inducing type I IFN during infection with most viruses, particularly by plasmacytoid dendritic cells. New intracellularviral pattern recognition receptors leading to type I IFN production have been identified. Many bacteria can also inducethe up-regulation of these cytokines. Interestingly, recent studies have found a detrimental effect on host cells if type IIFN is produced during infection with the intracellular gram-positive bacterial pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes. Thisreview will discuss the recent advances made in defining the signaling pathways leading to type I IFN production.
文摘Glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) is responsible for insulin-stimulated glucose transporting into the insulin-sensitive fat and muscle cells. The dynamics of GLUT4 storage vesicles (GSVs) remains to be explored and it is unclear how GSVs are arranged based on their mobility. We examined this issue in 3T3-L1 cells via investigating the three-dimensional mobility of single GSV labeled with EGFP-fused GLUT4. A thin layer of cytosol right adjacent to the plasma membrane was illuminated and successively imaged at 5 Hz under a total internal reflection fluorescence microscope with a penetration depth of 136 nm. Employing single particle tracking, the three-dimensional subpixel displacement of single GSV was tracked at a spatial precision of 22 nm. Both the mean square displacement and the diffusion coefficient were calculated for each vesicle. Tracking results revealed that vesicles moved as if restricted within a cage that has a mean radius of 160 nm, suggesting the presence of some intracellular tethering matrix. By constructing the histogram of the diffusion coefficients of GSVs, we observed a smooth distribution instead of the existence of distinct groups. The result indicates that GSVs are dynamically retained in a continuous and wide range of mobility rather than into separate classes.
基金This work was supported by the Key Grant Project of the Ministry of Education of China (No.03076).
文摘Ixeris chinesis (Thunb.) Ankai has been used as a Chinese folk medicine, but only scanty information is available on the physiological and biochemical functions of the compounds extracted from I. chinesis. In the present study the effects of apigenin -7-glucoside (APIG) isolated from I. chinesis against liver injury caused by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) were investigated. Methods The contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT), and reduced glutathione (GSH) were evaluated by spectrophotography. The content of 8-Hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) was measured with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) equipped with electrochemical and UV detection methods. The antioxidant activity of APIG was evaluated using chemiluminescence single photon counting technology. Results CCl4 significantly increased the enzyme activities of GPT and GOT in blood serum, as well as the level of MDA and 8-OHdG in liver tissue, and decreased the levels of GSH. Pretreatment with APIG was able not only to suppress the elevation of GPT, GOT, MDA and 8-OHdG, and inhibit the reduction of GSH in a dose-dependent manner in vivo, but also to reduce the damage of hepatocytes in vitro. On the other hand, we also found that APIG had strong antioxidant activity against reactive oxygen species (ROS) in vitro in a concentration-dependent manner. Conclusion The hepatoprotective activity of APIG is possibly due to its antioxidant properties, acting as scavengers of ROS. These results obtained in vivo and in vitro suggest that APIG has protective effects against hepatic oxidative injury induced by chemicals. Further studies on the pharmaceutical functions and immunological responses of APIG may help its clinical application.
文摘A large class of non-coding RNAs found in small molecule RNAs are closely associated with the regula-tion of gene expression, which are called microRNA (miRNA). MiRNAs are coded in intergenic or intronic regions and can be formed into foldback hairpin RNAs. These transcripts are cleaved by Dicer, generating mature miRNAs that can silence their target genes in different modes of action. Now, research on small molecule RNAs has gotten breakthrough advance in biology. To discover miRNA genes and their target genes has become hot topics in RNA research. This review attempts to look back the history of miRNA discovery, to introduce the methods of screening miRNAs, to localize miRNA loci in genome, to seek miRNA target genes and the biological func-tion, and to discuss the working mechanisms of miRNAs. Finally, we will discuss the potential important roles of miRNAs in modulating the genesis, development, growth, and differentiation of organisms. Thus, it can be predicted that a complete understanding of miRNA functions will bring us some new concepts, approaches and strategies for the study of living beings.
基金supported by the Precedent Project of Important Intersectional Disciplines in the Knowledge Innovation Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No.KJCX1-09-03).
文摘The retained curve in one-trial passive avoidance task (OTPAT) of day-old chicks hatching from natural geomagnetic field (control groups) is consistent with the acknowledged three-phase model. The two dips are at the 20th min and the 60 min, and the avoidance rates (AR) to the red bead in short- and intermediate-term memory are 68.4% on average, while that in the long-term momory was 74.8%. The OTPAT retained curve of day-old chicks hatching from hypomagnetic field space (experimental groups) presents the marked timing effect. The two dips were at the 25th min and the 50th min, the avoidance rates to the red bead (ARR) in the short- and intermediate-term memory was 74.1% on an average, which was resembled to that in control group; however, the long-term memory appeared an obvious fluctuation. Compared with that in control groups, ARR and the deviation coefficient in experimental groups were decreased by 25.3% and increased by 1.3 times, respectively. That is to say, both the memory ability and stability in the experimental chicks declined. The result shows that the hypomagnetic field space has a negative effect on the development of chick brain function, and that cannot be negligible.
文摘The purified thermophilic bacterium PS3 F1β10×His-tag is inserted into the F0F1-ATP synthases of chromatophores isolated from photosynthetic bacteria Rhodospirillum rubrum. The studies of biochemical properties of the hybrid chromatophores show that they have both protons-driving capability and photophosphorylation. The fluorescent actin filaments, as a marker of its orientation by video-microscopic experiment, are connected via Maleimido-C3-NTA to the reconstituted β10×His-tag of F0F1-ATP synthases.The clockwise rotation of FoFt-ATP synthases driven by light is observed directly when viewed from the Fo side to Ft. This system should be valuable for further studying the coupling property of F0F1-ATP synthase.
文摘To investigate the effects of short-term intra- ocular pressure (IOP) elevation on the receptive field proper- ties of lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) cells, responses of the LGN cells to annulus, disc and drifting gratings with high or low spatial frequencies have been recorded extracellularly in the cat with the retinal perfusion pressure kept stable (30 mmHg). Our results indicated that the responses of the X and Y type LGN cells were significantly weakened during IOP elevation. And the responses varied with the different mechanisms of receptive fields. Specifically, while using an- nulus and disc as stimuli, the responses of Y cells were more tolerant than X cells to IOP elevation. The surround area of the receptive field was more sensitive to IOP elevation than the center. The mean responses during IOP elevation de- creased more than the peak responses did. IOP elevation has more influence on the responses of X cells than on the re- sponse of Y cells to the drifting gratings with high spatial frequency. These results may reflect different degrees of ischemia on corresponding retinal structures caused by IOP elevation.
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 30170250 and 39770209).
文摘Topography of acoustic response characteris-tics of the midbrain inferior colliculus (IC) of the Kunming mouse was studied by using extracellular recording tech-niques. The characteristic frequency (CF) range represented in the different divisions of the IC differed markedly: 4—15 kHz in the dorsal cortex (DC), 10—70 kHz in the centralnucleus (CN), and 4—35 kHz in the external cortex (EC).The CF in the CN increased from dorsal and lateral to ven-tral and medial, higher CFs represented at its ventromedial part and lower CFs at its dorsal part. The isofrequency con-tours of CFs were incurvate. Minimum thresholds (MT) ofthe auditory neurons in DC and the central part of CN were lower (about 10 dB SPL), but considerably higher in thedorsal and ventral region of EC. Results suggest that each of the divisions in the mouse IC may have different auditory functions.
文摘In the present study, we have developed the method brought forward recently for protein design based on the relative entropy. The new approach can be used in more common situation other than the special limits in the anterior method. The results indicate that our generalized method has increased the prediction precision for protein sequence and will be in favor of the study for protein design.
文摘By means of a particular two-tone stimulationparadigm in combination of using a pair of electrodes forsimultaneously recording from two inferior colliculus (IC)neurons, the current in vivo study is undertaken to explorethe role of frequency band integration (FBI) in sharpening offrequency tuning in the big brown bat, Eptesicus fuscus.Three major results are found: (1) The paired neurons cor-related to FBI are located not only within the same frequencyfilter bandwidth (FFB), but also across different FFBs. Therelations of their frequency tuning curves (FTCs) are mainlyof two types: the flank-overlapped and overlaid patterns. (2)Although the sharpness of FTCs between paired neurons ismutual, the sharpening efficiency of neurons located withinthe same FFB is higher than that of neurons across FFBs,and the FTCs of neurons with the best frequencies (BF) of 20--30 kHz are most strongly sharpened. (3) The strength ofFBI is weak near the BF but gradually increased with fre-quencies away from the BF of sound stimuli. This suggeststhat the dynamical FBI of the IC neurons located within and across the FFBs might be involved in the formation of func-tional FFB structures.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 1989380 and 10174097)
文摘A 1-mm in diameter polystyrene bead coated with lectin is trapped by optical tweezers which is formed by a focused laser beam (740 nm). A leucocyte adhered to the bottom of sample cell is chosen to close to the trapped bead. When their stable combination is confirmed, the leucocyte is displaced by moving the sample stage. A tether is then formed between the trapped bead and the membrane. The force acting on the tether is measured by a detector equipped on the optical tweezers system. The deformation of the membrane is diverse in different contact conditions. When the contact area is small, the tether is very thin and the force on it is 7.4 pN (10-12 N), while the tether is much thicker un-der a larger contact area and its corresponding force is about 14 pN. It is presumed that the latter is related to the defor-mation of cytoskeleton.
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 39970174) and the Foundation of the National Key Research Development Project of China (Grant No. G1999075601).
文摘Earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme component A (EFEa), a protein with dual fibrinolytic activity, is one of the major therapeutically important earthworm fibrinolytic enzyme components. The cDNA fragment encoded the ma-ture protein was cloned from earthworm (Eisenia fetida) by the RT-PCR technique. The deduced amino acid sequence of the EFE component A shows high homology with some members of serine proteases trypsin family, and the amino acid residues constituting the active sites are conserved in the EFEa as compared with the other proteins of the trypsin family. The cDNA fragment was subcloned into the expres-sion vector pQE31 and pMAL-c2X of E. coli. The resulting expression plasmids, pQE-efea and pMAL-efea, were used to transform the E. coli strain M15. Recombinant protein bands corresponding with calculated molecular weights were induced. The induced His6-EFEa fusion protein with pQE- efea was accumulated into inclusion body, while the induced MBP-EFEa fusion protein with pMAL-efea was soluble and showed fibrinolytic activities.
基金This work was supported by the WHO/Rockefeller Fundation(Grant No.RF96020#78)the Knowledge Innovation Program of CAS(Grant No.KSCX-2-SW-201)+1 种基金the National“973”Program(Grant No.G1999055901)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.30270196)
文摘The target molecule of monoclonal antibody AA98 (AA for short) is a new vascular endothelial cell related factor and plays a role in angiogenesis as indicated by the previous data. To investigate its role in angiogenesis and placentation in primate, we examined its expression in the implantation sites on D17, 19, 28 and 34 of gestation in rhesus monkey by immunohistochemistry and Western immunoblot. Western blot analysis showed that the primary antibody used in this study was specific for its epitope. AA protein was mainly expressed in small blood vessels and in some cytotrophoblast cells. The AA staining was found mainly in the endothelial cells and vascular small muscle.This observation supported the AA's role in angiogenesis. AA was spatio-temporarily expressed in cytotrophoblasts: weak in proliferating trophoblast within cell column and endovascular trophoblast, strong in trophoblastic subpopulation within the basal plate and vascular trophoblast; AA staining within the basal plate was down-regulated during early placentation. The shift of AA98 expression in extravillous trophoblasts suggestes a role of this new factor during the course of cytotrophoblast metastasis and spiral artery remodeling. The spatio-temporarily expression indicats that AA98 could be also used as a trophoblast cellular marker to characterize the acquisition of a vascular endothelial and invasive phenotype.
文摘The 5′/3′ UTRs of mRNA are crucial in translational regulation, and several serious diseases are believed tobe associated with abnormal splicing of these parts of the mRNA sequence. In this work a novel method which usessequence alignment database searching for detecting chimeric 5′/3′ UTRs with cross-chromosomal splicing is reported.Eight highly credible instances of cross-chromosomal splicing have been found using this method, representing additional confirmation of the existence of cross-chromosomal splicing events provided by bioinformatics tools. Since noconserved motif has been found in any of the eight instances,and at the same time current prediction algorithms produceonly trivial secondary structures at the "splicing sites", it isnot possible to identify any specific signal leading to the splicing.
基金supported by the State Key Basic Research and Development Plan Project(Grant No.199801012).
文摘Atomic force microscope was employed to study the surface structure of purple membrane (PM) using contact mode in liquid. The surface structures of native PM and PM partly dissolved by detergent CHAPS were com- pared. Results show that 6 mmol/L CHAPS could induce some cracks and holes in PM. While Bateriorhodopsin (BR) was still presented as trimers in the two-dimensional hex- agonal structure. We assume that it was caused by the inter- action between CHAPS micellar and PM. Both absorption spectra and flash photolysis kinetic spectra indicated that BR抯 biochemical functions have been changed.
