Duplex dual-labeled fluorescence probe-based melting curve and endpoint genotyping assays for genotyping of rs2000999 and haptoglobin gene deletion

Haptoglobin (Hp) is a hemoglobin-binding serum glycoprotein. Some variations in the Hp gene (HP) or Hp-related gene (HPR), including a single-nucleotide polymorphism in intron 2 of HRP, rs2000999, and a complete deletion of the HP gene (HP^del), one of the rare variants of HP, have been reported to correlate with the serum cholesterol concentration as well as the serum Hp concentration. In this study, we developed a duplex dual-labeled fluorescence probe-based method to simultaneously determine the rs2000999 G > A polymorphism by melting curve genotyping and the zygosity of HP^del by endpoint genotyping. This method was then validated by using the genomic DNA from 94 Japanese subjects for whom genotypes of rs2000999 and HP^del zygosity had already been determined. The results obtained with this method were in perfect agreement with the previous ones. Thus, the present method enables us to estimate these two polymorphisms in relatively large-scale groups of subjects, especially in Asian populations where the HP^del is distributed.     

DCE-MRI参数联合IFIT1基因对腰椎间盘突出患者椎间盘退变程度的评估价值

探讨DCE-MRI参数及IFIT1基因对腰椎间盘突出症(LDH)患者椎间盘退变(IDD)程度的评估价值。随机选取确诊的66例LDH患者作为研究对象,根据改良Pfirrmann分级法将患者分为2组:轻中度IDD(Ⅰ~Ⅲ级)组(46例)和重度IDD(Ⅳ~Ⅴ级)组20例。通过DCE-MRI检查考察患者的K-trans值,采用日本骨科学会评分(JOA)评估腰椎功能,采用视觉模拟评分法(VAS)评估腰部疼痛,采用RT-PCR检测外周血单个核细胞(PBMC)中IFIT1的mRNA表达。轻中度IDD组的K-trans值显著低于重度IDD组。轻中度IDD组患者PBMC中的IFIT1 mRNA相对表达量显著低于重度IDD组。K-trans值与PBMC中的IFIT1 mRNA水平和VAS评分正相关,与JOA评分负相关(P<0.05)。PBMC中的IFIT1 mRNA水平与VAS评分正相关,与JOA评分负相关(P<0.05)。K-trans值和PBMC中的IFIT1 mRNA水平联合诊断重度IDD的AUC值、敏感性和特异性分别为0.991、91.3%和100.0%,AUC值和特异性均高于单独诊断。DCE-MRI检查中的K-trans值联合PBMC中的IFIT1 mRNA水平可用于LDH患者IDD程度的诊断。     

In Silico Analysis of P450s and Their Role in Secondary Metabolism in the Bacterial Class Gammaproteobacteria

The impact of lifestyle on shaping the genome content of an organism is a well-known phenomenon and cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYPs/P450s), heme-thiolate proteins that are ubiquitously present in organisms, are no exception. Recent studies focusing on a few bacterial species such as Streptomyces, Mycobacterium, Cyanobacteria and Firmicutes revealed that the impact of lifestyle affected the P450 repertoire in these species. However, this phenomenon needs to be understood in other bacterial species. We therefore performed genome data mining, annotation, phylogenetic analysis of P450s and their role in secondary metabolism in the bacterial class Gammaproteobacteria. Genome-wide data mining for P450s in 1261 Gammaproteobacterial species belonging to 161 genera revealed that only 169 species belonging to 41 genera have P450s. A total of 277 P450s found in 169 species grouped into 84 P450 families and 105 P450 subfamilies, where 38 new P450 families were found. Only 18% of P450s were found to be involved in secondary metabolism in Gammaproteobacterial species, as observed in Firmicutes as well. The pathogenic or commensal lifestyle of Gammaproteobacterial species influences them to such an extent that they have the lowest number of P450s compared to other bacterial species, indicating the impact of lifestyle on shaping the P450 repertoire. This study is the first report on comprehensive analysis of P450s in Gammaproteobacteria.     

Tiling solutions for optimal biological sensing

Biological systems, from cells to organisms, must respond to the ever-changing environment in order to survive and function. This is not a simple task given the often random nature of the signals they receive, as well as the intrinsically stochastic, many-body and often self-organized nature of the processes that control their sensing and response and limited resources. Despite a wide range of scales and functions that can be observed in the living world, some common principles that govern the behavior of biological systems emerge. Here I review two examples of very different biological problems: information transmission in gene regulatory networks and diversity of adaptive immune receptor repertoires that protect us from pathogens. I discuss the trade-offs that physical laws impose on these systems and show that the optimal designs of both immune repertoires and gene regulatory networks display similar discrete tiling structures. These solutions rely on locally non-overlapping placements of the responding elements (genes and receptors) that, overall, cover space nearly uniformly.     

Transplantation of betacellulin-transduced islets improves glucose intolerance in diabetic mice

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease caused by permanent destruction of insulin-producing pancreatic β cells and requires lifelong exogenous insulin therapy. Recently, islet transplantation has been developed, and although there have been significant advances, this approach is not widely used clinically due to the poor survival rate of the engrafted islets. We hypothesized that improving survival of engrafted islets through ex vivo genetic engineering could be a novel strategy for successful islet transplantation. We transduced islets with adenoviruses expressing betacellulin, an epidermal growth factor receptor ligand, which promotes β-cell growth and differentiation, and transplanted these islets under the renal capsule of streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. Transplantation with betacellulin-transduced islets resulted in prolonged normoglycemia and improved glucose tolerance compared with those of control virus-transduced islets. In addition, increased microvascular density was evident in the implanted islets, concomitant with increased endothelial von Willebrand factor immunoreactivity. Finally, cultured islets transduced with betacellulin displayed increased proliferation, reduced apoptosis and enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in the presence of cytokines. These experiments suggest that transplantation with betacellulin-transduced islets extends islet survival and preserves functional islet mass, leading to a therapeutic benefit in type 1 diabetes.     

Non‐Heme Dioxygenase Catalyzes Atypical Oxidations of 6,7‐Bicyclic Systems To Form the 6,6‐Quinolone Core of Viridicatin‐Type Fungal Alkaloids

The 6,6‐quinolone scaffold of the viridicatin‐type of fungal alkaloids are found in various quinolone alkaloids which often exhibit useful biological activities. Thus, it is of interest to identify viridicatin‐forming enzymes and understand how such alkaloids are biosynthesized. Here an Aspergillal gene cluster responsible for the biosynthesis of 4′‐methoxyviridicatin was identified. Detailed in vitro studies led to the discovery of the dioxygenase AsqJ which performs two distinct oxidations: first desaturation to form a double bond and then monooxygenation of the double bond to install an epoxide. Interestingly, the epoxidation promotes non‐enzymatic rearrangement of the 6,7‐bicyclic core of 4′‐methoxycyclopenin into the 6,6‐quinolone viridicatin scaffold to yield 4′‐methoxyviridicatin. The finding provides new insight into the biosynthesis of the viridicatin scaffold and suggests dioxygenase as a potential tool for 6,6‐quinolone synthesis by epoxidation of benzodiazepinediones.     

Rapid measurements of curcumin from complex samples coupled with magnetic biocompatibility molecularly imprinted polymer using electrochemical detection

Curcumin widely exists in food, and rapid selective and accurate detection of curcumin have great significance in chemical industry. In this experiment, a new magnetic biocompatibility molecularly imprinted polymer was prepared with nontoxic and biocompatible Zein to adsorb curcumin selectively. The polymer has high biocompatibility, good adsorption capacity, and specific adsorption for curcumin. Combined with portable electrochemical workstations, the polymer can be used to detect curcumin rapidly and cost‐effectively. Using curcumin as a template and Zein as the crosslinking agent, the polymers were synthesized on the surface of Fe₃O₄ particles for solid phase extraction. The experimental results showed that the polymer reached large adsorption capacity (32.12 mg/g) with fast kinetics (20 min). The adsorption characteristic of the polymer followed the Langmuir isotherm and pseudo‐second‐order kinetic models. Hexacyanoferrate was used as electrochemical probe to generate signals, and the linear range was 5–200 µg/mL for measuring curcumin. The experimental analysis showed that the polymer was an ideal material for selective accumulation of curcumin from complex samples. This approach has been successfully applied to the determination of curcumin in food samples with electrochemical detection, indicating that this is a feasible and practical technique.     

玻璃基质微流控芯片用于DNA片段的分离和C677T基因突变的快速检测

基于微加工方法,在一般实验条件下,成功地制备了玻璃芯片。利用水溶性聚合物对玻璃通道进行动态修饰,从而抑制了DNA分子的吸附作用,并成功地用于DNA片段的分离和四氢叶酸还原酶基因(MTHFR)中C677T的突变检测。     

Biofortification—A Frontier Novel Approach to Enrich Micronutrients in Field Crops to Encounter the Nutritional Security

Globally, many developing countries are facing silent epidemics of nutritional deficiencies in human beings and animals. The lack of diversity in diet, i.e., cereal-based crops deficient in mineral nutrients is an additional threat to nutritional quality. The present review accounts for the significance of biofortification as a process to enhance the productivity of crops and also an agricultural solution to address the issues of nutritional security. In this endeavor, different innovative and specific biofortification approaches have been discussed for nutrient enrichment of field crops including cereals, pulses, oilseeds and fodder crops. The agronomic approach increases the micronutrient density in crops with soil and foliar application of fertilizers including amendments. The biofortification through conventional breeding approach includes the selection of efficient genotypes, practicing crossing of plants with desirable nutritional traits without sacrificing agricultural and economic productivity. However, the transgenic/biotechnological approach involves the synthesis of transgenes for micronutrient re-translocation between tissues to enhance their bioavailability. Soil microorganisms enhance nutrient content in the rhizosphere through diverse mechanisms such as synthesis, mobilization, transformations and siderophore production which accumulate more minerals in plants. Different sources of micronutrients viz. mineral solutions, chelates and nanoparticles play a pivotal role in the process of biofortification as it regulates the absorption rates and mechanisms in plants. Apart from the quality parameters, biofortification also improved the crop yield to alleviate hidden hunger thus proving to be a sustainable and cost-effective approach. Thus, this review article conveys a message for researchers about the adequate potential of biofortification to increase crop productivity and nourish the crop with additional nutrient content to provide food security and nutritional quality to humans and livestock.