Cloning of BjNAC102 Promoter and Construction of Expression Vector in Brassica juncea

Transcription factor NAC102 plays an important role in the abiotic stress responses of plants.In this study,the promoter sequence of 3000 bp located in the upstream of the BjNAC102 gene was cloned from Brassica juncea‘Sichuan Yellow Seed’by using the homologous cloning method.The expression vector of the GUS gene driven by the BjNAC102 promoter was constructed by seamless cloning technology.The results showed that the sequence of the promoter of the BjNAC102 gene contained many cis-acting elements involved in light responsiveness,gibberellinresponsive element,and auxin-responsive element.It was speculated that BjNAC102 played an important role in the abiotic stress response in Brassica juncea.The expression vector of the promoter of the BjNAC102 gene was constructed,which layed a foundation for further studies of the expression pattern of the BjNAC102 gene in Brassica juncea.

Cloning and Expression of the Promoter of Maize Starch-Branching Enzyme sbeⅡb Gene

[Objective] The aim was to construct promoter of maize starch-branching enzyme sbe Ⅱb gene specifically expressed in seed.[Method] The promoter sequence of maize starch-branching enzyme sbe Ⅱb gene was amplified by LA-PCR and then cloned into pMD18-T vector.Subsequently,the promoter was cloned into pBI121 vector to construct plant expression vector pBI121-sbe Ⅱb.Recombinant plasmid pSBE-GUS was constructed by connecting GUS gene into pBI121-sbe Ⅱb and transformed into tobacco mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens,before detection by PCR and Southern blot.The biochemical analysis and fluorescence detection of GUS activity were performed in different parts of the tobacco by Gene Gun Method and Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation respectively.[Result] The homology between promoter sequence cloned in this experiment and the corresponding sequence announced in the GenBank reached 98.52%.Four transformed tobaccos were obtained by PCR and Southern blot after co-culture and selective culture.A small number of blue spots appeared in leaves,and the spots could barely been seen in the stems and roots,while a large number of blue spots were found in seeds.So,it could be concluded that the promoter of sbeⅡb gene was specifically expressed in seeds.[Conclusion] Promoter of maize starch branching enzyme sbe Ⅱb specifically expressed in seeds was successfully cloned.

Underexpression of LATS1 TSG in colorectal cancer is associated with promoter hypermethylation

AIM:To investigate large tumor suppressor 1 (LATS1 ) expression, promoter hypermethylation, and microsatellite instability in colorectal cancer (CRC).METHODS:RNA was isolated from tumor tissue of 142 CRC patients and 40 colon mucosal biopsies of healthy controls. After reverse transcription, quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed, and LATS1 expression was normalized to expression of the ACTB and RPL32 housekeeping genes. To analyze hypermethylation, genomic DNA was isolated from 44 tumor CRC biopsies, and methylation-specific PCR was performed. Microsatellite instability (MSI) status was checked with PCR using BAT26, BAT25, and BAT40 markers in the genomic DNA of 84 CRC patients, followed by denaturing gel electrophoresis. RESULTS:Decreased LATS1 expression was found in 127/142 (89.4%) CRC cases with the average ratio of the LATS1 level 10.33 ± 32.64 in CRC patients vs 32.85 ± 33.56 in healthy controls. The lowest expression was found in Dukes' B stage tumors and G1 (welldifferentiated) cells. Hypermethylation of the LATS1 promoter was present in 25/44 (57%) CRC cases analyzed. LATS1 promoter hypermethylation was strongly associated with decreased gene expression; methylated cases showed 162× lower expression of LATS1 than unmethylated cases. Although high-grade MSI (mutation in all three markers) was found in 14/84 (17%) cases and low-grade MSI (mutation in 1-2 markers) was found in 30/84 (36%) cases, we found no association with LATS1 expression. CONCLUSION:Decreased expression of LATS1 in CRC was associated with promoter hypermethylation, but not MSI status. Such reduced expression may promote progression of CRC.

Expression of Foreign Gene in Mycobacterium Regulated by Human Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Heat Shock Protein 70 Promoter

The DNA fragments of 150bp length promoter 0f human Mycobacterium(M.) tuberculosis heat shock protein (hsp)7O and 650bp length foreign gene, the Schistosoma japonicum glutathione S-transferase(Sj26GST)gene,were obtained by amplification with polymerase chain reaction. And the 150p DNA sequence upstream initiation codon ATG of the human M. tuberculosis hsp7O promoter that contains the sequence TTGAG and ATCATA which consensus with E. coli promoter's -35 and-10 region respectively, as well as ribosome binding site GGAGG at position-12-8 upstream the ATG were determined by SangerDideoxyribonucleotide-mediated chain-termination method-Then, the human M. tuberculosis hsp70 promoter and Sj26GST cDNA were cloned into E. coli-mycobacteria shuttle plasmid pBCG-2000 to construct E. coli-Mycobacterium expression shuttle plasmid pBCG- Sj26 that can express Sj26GST gene.The M. smegmatis were electroporated and the positivecolonies were selected by kanamycin-The M.smegmatis containing the vector pBCG-Sj26 can be induced by heating and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to express GST. The molecular weight of the recombinant GST(rGST) was 26000. The rGST contents that were about 10 percent of the total bacterial protein were analyzed by density scanning after running SDS-PAGE. This study would provide scientific evidences for application of hsp70 promoter in expressing foreign gene in mycobacterium and development of mycobacterium as multiple-valent vectoral vaccine.

Regulated Gene Expression with Promoters Responding to Inducers

Genetically engineered transgenic animals and plants have proven to be extremely useful for analyzing biochemical and developmental processes.Promoters responding to chemical inducers will be powerful tools for basic research in molecular biology and biotechnological applications.Various chemical inducible systems based on activation and inactivation of the target gene had been described.The transfer of regulatory elements from prokaryotes,insects,and mammals has opened new avenues to construct chemically inducible promoters that differ in their ability to regulate the temporal and spatial expression patterns,and this will dramatically increase the application of transgenic technology.This review provides an overview on regulation of gene expression,promoter activating systems,promoter inactivation systems,inducible gene over expression,and inducible anti suppression.

Identification of an intestine-specific promoter and inducible expression of bacterial α-galactosidase in mammalian cells by a lac operon system

Background： o-galactosidase has been widely used in animal husbandry to reduce anti-nutritional factors （such as o-galactoside） in feed. Intestine-specific and substrate inducible expression of a-galactosidase would be highly beneficial for transgenic animal production. Methods： To achieve the intestine-specific and substrate inducible expression of o-galactosidase, we first identified intestine-specific promoters by comparing the transcriptional activity and tissue specificity of four intestine-specific promoters from human intestinal fatty acid binding protein, rat intestinal fatty acid binding protein, human mucin-2 and human lysozyme. We made two chimeric constructs combining the promoter and enhancer of human mucin-2, rat intestinal trefoil factor and human sucrase-isomaltase. Then a modified lac operon system was constructed to investigate the induction of o-galactosidase expression and enzyme activity by isopropyl p-D-]-thiogalactopyranoside （IPTG） and an a-galactosidase substrate, a-lactose. We declared that the research carried out on human （Zhai Yafeng） was in compliance with the Helsinki Declaration and experimental research on animals also followed internationally recognized guidelines. Results： The activity of the human mucin-2 promoter was about 2 to 3 times higher than that of other intestine-specific promoters. In the/ac operon system, the repressor significantly decreased （P 〈 0.05） luciferase activity by approximately 6.5-fold and reduced the percentage of cells expressing green fluorescent protein （GFP） by approximately 2-fold. In addition, the expression level of o-galactosidase mRNA was decreased by 6-fold and a-galactosidase activity was reduced by 8-fold. in line with our expectations, IPTG and a-lactose supplementation reversed （P 〈 O.O5） the inhibition and produced a 5-fold increase of luciferase activity, an 11-fold enhancement in the percentage of cells with GFP expression and an increase in o-galactosidase mfiNA abundance （by about 5-fold） and o-galactosidase activity （by about 7-fold）. Conclusions： We have successfully constructed a high specificity inducible lac operon system in an intestine-derived cell line, which could be of great value for gene therapy applications and transgenic animal production.

Expression in Arabidopsis of a Strawberry Linalool Synthase Gene Under the Control of the Inducible Potato PI2 Promoter

To investigate the role of inducible linalool in Arabidopsis-insect interactions, the FANES 1 linalool synthase （LIS） cDNA from strawberry with plastid targeting and a synthetic intron （LIS＇） was placed under the control of the wound inducible proteinase inhibitor 2 （PI2） promoter from potato. The construct pBin-PPi2-LIS＇ was transformed to Arabidopsis thaliana ecotype Columbia 0. Kanamycin resistant TO seedlings were confirmed for the presence and transcription of the LIS＇ gene by PCR analysis on genomic DNA and by RT-PCR analysis on RNA. Genomic and RT-PCR products were sequenced to confirm correct splicing of the synthetic intron. The expression of active linalool synthase by the PPI2-LIS＇ gene construct in the transgenic lines was assessed by measuring linalool emission using solid phase micro-extraction （SPME） GC-MS measurements after induction with methyl jasmonate. Among 30 tested independent T2 transgenic lines, 10 exhibited linalool production. Linalool expression could be induced by methyl jasmonate treatment, but not by diamondback moth larvae.

Cloning the Promoter of BcNA1 from Brassica napus and Fad2 Gene from Arabidopsis thaliana and Construction of the Plant Expression Vector

The upstream regulatory region of a seed specific gene was isolated from the genomic DNA of Brassica napus by PCR amplification. The cloned fragment contained 1755 nucleotides, and shared a sequence homology of 99.6% with the reported data. The coding region of oleic acid desaturase gene was then cloned from Arabidopsis thaliana. The sequencing analysis indicated that the sequence of the PCR product was just the same as reported before. In addition, the plant expression vector harboring the seed specific promoter and trans Fad2 gene was constructed.

GFAP promoter directs lacZ expression specifically in a rat hepatic stellate cell line

AIM： The GFAP was traditionally considered to be a biomarker for neural gila （mainly astrocytes and nonmyelinating Schwann cells）. Genetically, a 2.2-kb human GFAP promoter has been successfully used to target astrocytes in vitro and in vivo. More recently, GFAP was also established as one of the several makers for identifying hepatic stellate cells （HSC）. In this project, possible application of the same 2.2-kb human GFAP promoter for targeting HSC was investigated. METHODS： The GFAP-lacZ transgene was transfected into various cell lines （HSC, hepatocyte, and other nonHSC cell types）. The transgene expression specificity was determined by X-gal staining of the β-galactosidase activity. And the responsiveness of the transgene was tested with a typical pro-fibrotic cytokine TGF-β1. The expression of endogenous GFAP gene was assessed by real-time RT-PCR, providing a reference for the transgene expression. RESULTS： The results demonstrated for the first time that the 2.2 kb hGFAP promoter was not only capable of directing HSC-specific expression, but also responding to a known pro-fibrogenic cytokine TGF-β1 by upregulation in a doseand time-dependent manner, similar to the endogenous GFAP. CONCLUSION： In conclusion, these findings suggested novel utilities for using the GFAP promoter to specifically manipulate HSC for therapeutic purpose.

Specific Expression of Maize SBEIIb Promoter Mediated by Different Promoter Region in Transgenic Tobacco Plants

Starch branching enzyme （SBE） catalyzes the biosynthesis of amylopectin. We described the isolation and characterization of SBEIIb promoter and their expression patterns in transgenic tobacco. Using the genomic DNA of maize cultivar Lunuo 1 as template, the SBEIIb promoter was isolated by PCR and was cloned into pMD18-T vector. To study SEBIIb gene regulation at the cellular level, SBEIIb promoter was fused to the ^-glucuronidase （GUS） report gene. The results of the fluorometric GUS assays indicate that the sbeⅡb-GUS fusion directed a seed-specific expression. Four series of constructs were made with the promoter and the GUS reporter gene to investigate the cis-acting analysis, showing that the four different constructs all can drive expression of the GUS gene in seed plumule and cotyledon and the GUS activity was apparently decreased with the progressive loss of promoter 5＇ end.

Construction of Smac gene-carrying and human uroplakin Ib promoter-Regulated Genetic Vector and its Expression

Objective： To construct an eukaryotic expression vector that contains Smac gene, which is regulated by human Uroplakin Ib （UpIb） promoter. Methods： For the directionality of Smac expression in the transitional cell carcinoma of bladder, internal CMV and T7 promoter sequences in eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA3.1-Smac were replaced with UpIb promoter to construct a new plasmid. The plasmid DNA was identified by gel electrophoresis after being double digested at respective sites, and then the sequence was analyzed. The expression of Smac mRNA and protein in BIU87 cell line were detected after the transfection by using the newly constructed vector. Results： The Smac gene-carrying and UpIb promoter-regulated eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA3-UpIb-promoter-Smac was successfully constructed. The expression of Smac mRNA was approximately increased by 2.1 times and the expression of Smac protein was increased in about 71% BIU87 cells. Conclusion： The new vector can be effectively expressed in bladder cancer cells and be of great significance for bladder cancer-targeted gene therapy.

The expression of foreign gene under the control of cauliflower mosaic virus 35s RNA promoter

The promoter region of cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35s RNA was employed to construct an intermediate expression vector which can be used in Ti plasmid system of Agro-bacterium tumefaciens. The original plasmid, which contains a polylinker between CaMV 35s RNA and its 3' termination signal in pUC18 was modified to have another antibiotic resistance marker (kanamycin resistance gene Kmr) to facilitate the selection of recombinant with Ti plasmid. Octopine synthase (ocs) structural gene was inserted into this vector downstream of CaMV 35s RNA promoter. This chimaeric gene was introduced into integrative Ti plasmid vector pGV3850, and then transformed into Nicotiana tobaccum cells. A binary plasmid vector was also used to introduce the chimaeric gene into tobacco cells. In both cases, the expression of ocs gene was demonstrated. The amount of oc-topine was much more than the nopaline synthesized by no-paline synthase (nos) gene transferred at the same time with Ti plasmid vector. This demonstrated that CaMV 35s RNA promoter is stronger in transcriptional function than the promoter of nos in tobacco cells.

Cloning, expression profiling and promoter functional analysis of bone morphogenetic protein 2 in the tongue sole(Cynoglossus semilaevis)

BMP2 plays crucial roles in vertebrate developmental process and acts as a bone inducer during osteogenesis. We present here the molecular cloning of bmp2 cDNA from the marine flatfish Cynoglossus semilaevis, and the analysis of bmp2 expression profiling and promoter function. The full length of bmp2 cDNA sequence is 2 048 bp,which encodes a protein of 422 amino acids. Tissue expression distribution of bmp2 was examined in 14 tissues of mature individuals by quantitative real time PCR（qRT-PCR）. The results revealed that bmp2 was expressed ubiquitously, and the highest expression level was detected in the spinal cord. Moreover, bmp2 expression levels were detected at 15 sampling time points of early developmental stages（egg, larva, juvenile and fingerling stages）.The highest expression level of bmp2 was observed at the gastrula stage, which was about ten times higher than those at the other three embryo stages. Whole-mount in situ hybridization showed that the bmp2 signal was strongly detected at the location of the crown-like larval fin, heart and liver, and slightly expressed in the notochord at one day post hatch（dph）; then the expression of bmp2 started to be concentrated in notochord at three dph. Subsequently, we characterized the 5′-flanking region of bmp2 by testing the promoter activity by Luciferase reporter assays. Positive regulatory region was detected at the location of –179 to ＋109. The predicted transcription factor binding sites（E-box binding factors, zinc finger transcription factor, etc.） in this region might participate in the transcriptional regulation of the bmp2 gene.

Construction of plant expression vector of adketo gene driven by a tomato fruit-special promoter

Objective:To construct the plant expression vector including Adketo gene from Adonis aestivalis and E8 promotor, and provide a new way for astaxanthin production by plant genetic engineering.Methods: The Adketo gene was clonied from Adonis aestivalis by RT-PCR and the 1.1 kb tomato E8 gene was amplified by PCR. then cloned into T vector.After the preliminary identification by Microbial PCR, the recombinant T- vectors were subjected to sequence analysis. Cut the E8 promoter and Adketo gene and inserted into the plant binary expression vector pBI121to obtain the recombinant expression vector. And then to identify the vector by microbial PCR detection and enzyme digestion.Results: Sequencing results analysis showed the right E8 and Adketo gene sequences, the identification by microbial PCR and digestion with restriction enzymes proved that the recombinant vector had the inserts with expected length of target fragments.Conclusion: The plant expression vector containing Adketo gene driven by fruit specific promoter E8 was successfully constructed.

Cloning and Expression of Ovarian-Specific Promoter in Rats

[Objective] To clone ovarian-specific promoter-1 （OSP-1） fragment in rats and detect the tissue-specific expression of OSP-1 at cell level. [Method] According to the known OSP-1 sequence in rats, the specific pdmers were designed. The OSP-1 fragment was amplified by PCR and compared with published OSP-1 sequence. After eukaryotic expression vector pOSP-1-EGFP-N1 was constructed by cloning OSP-1 promoter into the pEGFP-N1 vector without CMV, the recombinant plasmid was transfected into buffalo granulocytes, mammary epithelial cells and fetal fibroblast cells under mediation of liposome LipofectamineTM 2000. The green fluxorescent protein （GFP） expression was observed with the fluorescence microscope after transfection for 12, 24 and 48 h. [Result] The amplified OSP-1 fragment was 480 bp, and the homology to published rat OSP-1 sequence was 96%. The sequence analysis showed that this fragment contained a core promoter cis-element similar with TATA box and ChAT box, and multiple C/EBP beta transcription factor binding sites. The EGFP-expressing positive granulccytes were firstly observed at 12 h after transfection and they were increased. All the EGFP-expressing and non-expressing cells from granulocytes were large and round. After transfection for 48 h, the EGFP-expressing positive granulocytes were decreased. The EGFP was not expressed in buffalo mammary epithelial cell and fetal fibroblast cell. [ Conclusion] EGFP exDression controlled bv OSP-1 promoter can be found in buffao granulocvtes.

Drought-responsive genes expressed predominantly in root tissues are enriched with homotypic cis-regulatory clusters in promoters of major cereal crops

The root appears to be the most relevant organ for breeding drought stress tolerance.However, our knowledge about temporal and spatial regulation of drought-associated genes in the root remains fragmented, especially in crop plants. We performed a meta-analysis of expression divergence of essential drought-inducible genes and analyzed their association with cis-elements in model crops and major cereal crops. Our analysis of42 selected drought-inducible genes revealed that these are expressed primarily in roots,followed by shoot, leaf, and inflorescence tissues, especially in wheat. Quantitative real-time RT-PCR analysis confirmed higher expression of TaDREB2 and TaAQP7 in roots,correlated with extensive rooting and drought-stress tolerance in wheat. A promoter scan up to 2 kb upstream of the translation start site using phylogenetic footprinting revealed708 transcription factor binding sites, including drought response elements(DREs), auxin response elements(Aux REs), MYCREs/MYBREs, ABAREs, and ERD1 in 19 selected genes.Interestingly, these elements were organized into clusters of overlapping transcription factor binding sites known as homotypic clusters(HCTs), which modulate drought physiology in plants. Taken together, these results revealed the expression preeminence of major drought-inducible genes in the root, suggesting its crucial role in drought adaptation. The occurrence of HCTs in drought-inducible genes highlights the putative evolutionary modifications of crop plants in developing drought adaptation. We propose that these DNA motifs can be used as molecular markers for breeding drought-resilient cultivars, particularly in the cereal crops.

Isolation of a Genomic DNA for Gastrodia Antifungal Protein and Analyses of Its Promoter in Transgenic Tobacco

A genomic DNA containing 5'-upstream region and complete open reading frame of a Gastrodia antifungal protein was isolated by screening of a genomic library from Gastrodia elata B1. To investigate the promoter activity, the 5'-flanking region - 1 157 lip upstream from the putative transcription start site was fused to the coding sequence of beta-glucuronidase (GUS) gene and transformed into Nicotiana tabacum. The strongest GUS activity was detected in the roots of transgenic tobacco, followed by stems. The leaves only showed a low GUS activity. Furthermore, the promoter established inducible expression pattern in transgenic tobacco upon fungus Trichoderma viride inoculation and jasmonic acid and salicylic acid treatments.

Cloning and Functional Analysis of the Porcine Growth Hormone Gene Promoter

[Objective] This study aimed to clone the porcine growth hormone gene promoter and determine the core promoter sequences and the cis-acting elements. [Method] Sequence of the 5＇flanking region of porcine growth hormone gene was searched out and downloaded from the NCBI website. According to the targeted se- quence, primers were designed and synthesized for the PCR amplification. The 1 882 bp （-1 821 bp-＋61 bp） fragment was amplified by PCR. Nine promoter frag- ments with different lengths were obtained by genome-walking deletion method and then cloned into luciferase reporter vectors. Relative transcriptional activities of these 5＇ terminal-deleted plasmids in pituitary and non-pituitary cells were determined by transient transfection of the rat pituitary adenoma cell （GH3）, porcine lilac endotheli- um cell （PIEC） and porcrne Kidney-15 （PK15） with the constructed dual-luciferase vectors. [Result] Result of DNA sequencing showed that the 1 882 bp fragment of GH 5＇ promoter was successfully cloned. Nine luciferase reporter gene plasmids were constructed. DuaI-Luciferase reporter assay indicated that the promoter inserted into reporter gene vector had very strong cell specificity. [Conclusion] Porcine growth hormone gene specifically expresses in pituitary cells. The minimal promoter of the porcine growth hormone gene is mapped at the region -110 bp-＋61 bp. Promoter regions 218 bp--110 bp and -429 bp--218 bp contain positive regulatory elements.

种子特异性启动子(napinB promoter)分离、表达载体构建及转基因植物获得

利用PCR技术从油菜BrassicanapusH1 65基因组DNA中分离了napinB启动子。序列分析表明 ,扩增片段 (nap30 0 )与文献报道的napinB启动子相应区域的同源性为 97%。将其与gus连接构建种子特异性表达载体 ,农杆菌介导转化烟草。PCR、Southern结果显示 ,nap30 0已整合到烟草基因组DNA中 ,获得了转基因植株。

Isolation of a 1 195 bp 5′-Flanking Region of Rice Cytosolic Fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase and Analysis of Its Expression in Transgenic Rice

A genomic DNA fragment containing the 5'-upstream sequence and part of the open reading frame corresponding to the cytosolic fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (cyFBPase) cDNA was isolated by Genome Walking. The 1 195 lip 5'-flanking region which started from the translation initiation ATG codon was fused to reporter gene encoding beta-glucuronidase (GUS) and stably transferred to rice via particle bombardment. Strong GUS activity was detected in leaves and leaf sheaths of transgenic rice, but not in culms and roots. Histochemical localization revealed that GUS expression was exclusively restricted to mesophyll cells in transgenic rice. Our results indicate that the 1 195 bp fragment contains all the cis-elements required for directing mesophyll-specific expression pattern in rice.