近交系小鼠与封闭群小鼠学习能力的比较

本文以水迷宫法及 Y 型迷路法分别比较了近交系小鼠(C_(57)BL/6J 及 DBA/2)与封闭群小鼠(昆明鼠)的学习能力。在水迷宫试验中,C_(57)BL/6J 鼠的学习能力优于昆明鼠,且个体间变异程度小于昆明鼠。在 Y 型迷路试验中,DBA/2鼠的记忆力优于昆明鼠而变异程度小于昆明鼠。

Cloning and characterization of a FLORICAULA/LEAFY ortholog, PFL, in polygamous papaya

The homologous genes FLORICAULA (FLO) in Antirrhinum and LEAFY (LFY) in Arabidopsis are known to regu- late the initiation of flowering in these two distantly related plant species. These genes are necessary also for the expression of downstream genes that control floral organ identity. We used Arabidopsis LFY cDNA as a probe to clone and sequence a papaya ortholog of LFY, PFL. It encodes a protein that shares 61% identity with the Arabidopsis LFY gene and 71% identity with the LFY homologs of the two woody tree species: California sycamore (Platanus racemosa) and black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa). Despite the high sequence similarity within two conserved regions, the N-terminal proline-rich motif in papaya PFL differs from other members in the family. This difference may not affect the gene function of papaya PFL, since an equally divergent but a functional LFY ortholog NEEDLY of Pinus radiata has been reported. Genomic and BAC Southern analyses indicated that there is only one copy of PFL in the papaya genome. In situ hybridization experiments demonstrated that PFL is expressed at a relatively low level in leaf primordia, but it is expressed at a high level in the floral meristem. Quantitative PCR analyses revealed that PFL was expressed in flower buds of all three sex types - male, female, and hermaphrodite with marginal difference between hermaphrodite and unisexual flowers. These data suggest that PFL may play a similar role as LFY in flower development and has limited effect on sex differentiation in papaya.

Isozyme Analysis of Spotted Halibut Verasper variegatus Temminck et Schlegel

To investigate the tissue-specificities of isozymes and the genetic structureof wild spotted halibut ( Verasper variegatus) population, horizontal starch gel electrophoresiswas performed on 45 individuals collected in part of the Yellow Sea. The performances of 17 isozymesin 8 kinds of tissues or organs were screened preliminarily in a TC-7.0 buffer system. The resultsshowed that the screened isozymes displayed remarkable tissue-specificities. Finally, 14 enzymes(AAT, ADH, EST, OPI, G3PDH, IDHP, LAP, LDH, MDH, MPI, PGDH, PGM, SDH and SOD) and 4 kinds of tissues(eye, skeleton muscle, liver and heart) were selected for genetic analysis. Fourteen isozymes areencoded by 20 loci, and 9 of them are polymorphic. The polymorphic loci are AAT-1~*, GPI-2~*,G3PDH~*, IDHP-1~*, LDH~*, MPI~*, PGM-1~*. PGM-2~* and SDH~*, and the proportion of polymorphic lociis 0.4500 (P_(0.99)) ? The mean values of observed and expected heterozygosities are 0.0278and 0.0265, respectively and the average effective number of alleles is 1.0675.

Characterization of the Xenopus homolog of animmediate early gene associated with cell activation: sequence analysis and regulation of its expression by thyroid hormone during amphibian metamorphosis

The complex transformation of a tadpole to a frogduring amphibian development is under the control of thyroid hormone (T3). T3 is known to regulate gene transcription through its nuclear receptors. We have previouslyisolated many genes which are up-regulated by T3 in theintestine of Xenopus laevis tadpoles. We have now cloneda full- length cDNA for one such gene (IU12). Sequenceanalysis shows that the IU12 cDNA encodes a plasmamembrane protein with 12 transmembrane domains andhomologous to a mammalian gene associated with cell activation and organ development. Similarly, we have foundthat IU12 is activated during intestinal remodeling whenboth cell death and proliferation take place. Furthermore,IU12 is an early T3-response gene and its expression in theintestine during T3-induced metamorphosis mimics thatduring normal development. These results argue for a roleof IU12 in the signal transduction pathways leading to intestinal metamorphosis.

Molecular Characterization of Viral G Gene in Emerging and Re-emerging Areas of Rabies in China, 2007 to 2011

In recent years (2007 to 2011), although the overall number of rabies cases in China has decreased, there is evidence of emerging or re-emerging cases in regions without previous rabies cases or with low incidence of rabies. To investigate the origin and the factors affecting the spread of rabies in China, specimens were collected from 2007 to 2011 from provinces with emerging and re-emerging cases and tested for the presence of the rabies virus. Positive specimens were combined with sequences from GenBank to perform comparisons of homology and functional sites, and to carry out phylogenetic analyses. Out of these regions, five provinces had 9 positive specimens from canine and cattle, and 34 canine or human specimens were obtained from previously high-incidence provinces. Complete sequences of G gene were obtained for these samples. Homology of the sequences of these 43 specimens was 87%-100% at the nucleotide level and 93.7% -100% at the amino acid level. These G gene sequences were combined with reference sequence from GenBank and used to construct a phylogenetic tree. The results showed that 43 specimens were all assigned to China clade I and clade II, with all specimens from emerging and re-emerging areas placed within clade I. Specimens isolated from Shanxi and Inner Mongolia in 2011 were distinct from previously-isolated local strains and had closer homology to strains from Hebei, Beijing and Tianjin whereas new isolates from Shanghai were tightly clustered with strains isolated in the 1990s. Finally, Shaanxi isolates were clustered with strains from adjacent Sichuan. Our results suggest that the rabies cases in emerging and re-emerging areas in China in the last 5 years are a consequence of the epidemic spreading from of neighboring provinces and regions experiencing a serious epidemic of rabies.

Molecular Studies on Heat Shock Protein 70 Gene （Hsp70） Using ClustalW Multiple Sequence Alignment Analysis

Degenerate primers are particularly useful in amplifying homologous genes from different organisms. This paper describes a method for designing degenerate primers for a given multiple alignment of DNA sequences of Hsp70 gene family using ClustalW algorithm. The authors used an in silico approach to find a homology between more than one accession numbers of DNA sequences, X67711.2 was for Oryza sativa Hsp70, AY372071.1 was for Nicotiana tabacum Hsp70 and L41253.2 was for Lycopersicon esculentum Hsc70. The three accession numbers which were retrieved by the BLASTn program depend on their expected value （E-value）. Multiple sequence alignment was performed by ClustalW algorithm to produce a conserved blocks and determine the consensus region which had been used to produce the forward and reverse primer by the primer select module of DNAStar Lasergene V7 and In-Silco PCR module of FASTPCR program ver.4.0.8 was performed to detect the melting temperatures （Tm） and predict the PCR product size, The results of designed degenerate primer showed that there was a homology found between the designed primers and the DNA templates for the three accession numbers with at least 80% identity. The result of degenerate PCR showed that the three bands of the amplified PCR products of the three accession numbers were detected at the same molecular weight of marker （400 bp） with a difference about 15 pb compared to the in silco PCR product （385 pb）. In conclusion, this study focused on the importance of using the clustalW algorithm for designing the degenerate primer.

No association between phosphatase and tensin homolog genetic polymorphisms and colon cancer

AIM: To investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) tumor suppressor gene and risk of colon cancer. METHODS: We utilized a population-based casecontrol study of incident colon cancer individuals (n= 421) and controls (n = 483) aged ≥ 30 years to conduct a comprehensive tagSNP association analysis of the PTEN gene. RESULTS: None of the PTEN SNPs were statistically significantly associated with colon cancer when controlled for age, gender, and race, or when additionally adjusted for other known risk factors (P > 0.05). Haplotype analyses similarly showed no association between the PTEN gene and colon cancer. CONCLUSION: Our study does not support PTEN as a colon cancer susceptibility gene.

Polymorphisms of clip domain serine proteinase and serine proteinase homolog in the swimming crab Portunus trituberculatus andtheir associationwith Vibrio alginolyticus

Clip domain serine proteases （cSPs） and their homologs （SPHs） play an important role in various biological processes that are essential components of extracellular signaling cascades, especially in the innate immune responses of invertebrates. Here, polymorphisms of PtcSP and PtSPH from the swimming crab Portunus tritubereulatus were investigated to explore their association with resistance/ susceptibility to Vibrio alginolyticus. Polymorphic loci were identified using Clustal X, and characterized with SPSS 16.0 software, and then the significance of genotype and allele frequencies between resistant and susceptible stocks was determined by a Zz test. A total of 109 and 77 single nucleotide polymorphisms （SNPs） were identified in the genomic fragments of PtcSP and PtSPH, respectively. Notably, nearly half of PtSPH polymorphisms were found in the non-coding exon 1. Fourteen SNPs investigated were significantly associated with susceptibility/resistance to I1. alginolyticus （P〈0.05）. Among them, eight SNPs were observed in introns, and one synonymous, four non-synonymous SNPs and one ins-del were found in coding exons. In addition, five simple sequence repeats （SSRs） were detected in intron 3 of PtcSP. Although there was no statistically significant difference of allele frequencies, the SSRs showed different polymorphic alleles on the basis of the repeat number between resistant and susceptible stocks. After fiarther validation, polymorphisms investigated here might be applied to select potential molecular markers ofP. trituberculatus with resistance to I1. alginolyticus.

CLONING AND COMPARISON OF THE GENES ENCODING PREPROAPAMIN FROM THE VENOM OF 2 HONEYBEE AND 4 WASP SPECIES

Preproapamin genes were amplified by RT-PCR from total RNA from the venom glands of 2 honeybee species, Apis mellifera, A. cerana cerana, and 4 wasp species, Vespa magnifica, V. velutina nigrothorax and Polistes hebraeus, respectively. Their PCR products were ligated into pGEM -T easy vector and the nucleotide sequences analyzed. The six fragments were all 141?bp in length and contained a n ORF coding the precursor of apamin. The apamin precursors of V. magnifica, V. velutina nigrothorax and P. hebraeus had 95% and 93% similarity with that of A. melliera in nucleotide and amino acid sequences, respectively. That of Vespu la maculifrons was identical to that of A. mellifera in nucleotide and amino acid sequences. Apamin precursors of V. magnifica, P. hebraeus and V. velutina nigrothorax also had the same nucleotide sequences. The nucleotide sequences o f preproapamin genes from the Chinese honeybee, A. cerana cerana and 4 wasp sp ecies are described for the first time. A notable discovery was that the wasps species had exactly same apamins as the honeybees despite the fact they belong to different insect families.

Salinity tolerance in barley during germination——homologs and potential genes

Salinity affects more than 6%of the world’s total land area,causing massive losses in crop yield.Salinity inhibits plant growth and development through osmotic and ionic stresses;however,some plants exhibit adaptations through osmotic regulation,exclusion,and translocation of accumulated Na+or Cl-.Currently,there are no practical,economically viable methods for managing salinity,so the best practice is to grow crops with improved tolerance.Germination is the stage in a plant’s life cycle most adversely affected by salinity.Barley,the fourth most important cereal crop in the world,has outstanding salinity tolerance,relative to other cereal crops.Here,we review the genetics of salinity tolerance in barley during germination by summarizing reported quantitative trait loci(QTLs)and functional genes.The homologs of candidate genes for salinity tolerance in Arabidopsis,soybean,maize,wheat,and rice have been blasted and mapped on the barley reference genome.The genetic diversity of three reported functional gene families for salt tolerance during barley germination,namely dehydration-responsive element-binding(DREB)protein,somatic embryogenesis receptor-like kinase and aquaporin genes,is discussed.While all three gene families show great diversity in most plant species,the DREB gene family is more diverse in barley than in wheat and rice.Further to this review,a convenient method for screening for salinity tolerance at germination is needed,and the mechanisms of action of the genes involved in salt tolerance need to be identified,validated,and transferred to commercial cultivars for field production in saline soil.

Significant variations in alternative splicing patterns and expression profiles between human-mouse orthologs in early embryos

Human and mouse orthologs are expected to have similar biological functions; however, many discrepancies have also been reported. We systematically compared human and mouse orthologs in terms of alternative splicing patterns and expression profiles. Human-mouse orthologs are divergent in alternative splicing, as human orthologs could generally encode more isoforms than their mouse orthologs. In early embryos, exon skipping is far more common with human orthologs, whereas constitutive exons are more prevalent with mouse orthologs. This may correlate with divergence in expression of splicing regulators. Orthologous expression similarities are different in distinct embryonic stages, with the highest in morula. Expression differences for orthologous transcription factor genes could play an important role in orthologous expression discordance. We further detected largely orthologous divergence in differential expression between distinct embryonic stages. Collectively, our study uncovers significant orthologous divergence from multiple aspects, which may result in functional differences and dynamics between human-mouse orthologs during embryonic development.