Effect of HMGB1 expression knockdown on invasion ability of breast cancer cells induced by TNF-α

AIM:To investigate the effect of high-mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) expression knockdown on the invasion ability of breast cancer cells induced by tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). METHODS:HMGB1 siRNA was used to transfect into the breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells. The expression of HMGB1 at mRNA and protein levels was determined by RT-qPCR and Western blot. After the MDA-MB-231 cells with HMGB1 expression knockdown were treated with TNF-α, the apoptosis rate was analyzed by flow cytometry, the cell invasion ability was measured by Transwell assay, and the cell migration ability was detected by cell scratch test. The protein expression of E-cadherin, MMP-2, N-cadherin, MMP-9 and Bax was determined by Western blot. RESULTS:The expression of HMGB1 at mRNA and protein levels in the MDA-MB-231 cells transfected with HMGB1 siRNA was significantly lower than that in the non-transfected cells (P<0.05). The apoptosis rate in the cells was increased after TNF-α treatment, and the cell invasion and migration abilities were also increased. The protein level of E-cadherin in the cells was decreased, the protein level of N-cadherin was increased, and the protein levels of MMP-2, MMP-9 and Bax were also increased (P<0.05). After the MDA-MB-231 cells with HMGB1 expression knockdown were induced by TNF-α, the apoptotic rate was increased, the invasion and migration abilities were decreased, the protein levels of E-cadherin and Bax were increased, and the protein levels of N-cadherin, MMP-2 and MMP-9 were decreased, as compared with the cells only induced by TNF-α without knockdown of HMGB1 expression (P<0.05). CONCLUSION:Knockdown of HMGB1 expression enhances the apoptosis of breast cancer cells induced by TNF-α, and inhibited the cell invasion, migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition induced by TNF-α. The mechanism may be related with the changes of protein expression of MMP-2, MMP-9 and Bax.     

玉米大斑病菌GPCRs超家族的基因鉴定及其在孢子发育过程中的转录模式

G蛋白偶联受体(G protein-coupled receptors,GPCRs)广泛存在于动物、植物以及微生物中,是最大的涉及信号转导的膜受体家族.本研究通过基于隐马尔科夫模型的HMMER 3.0软件搜索玉米大斑病菌(Setosphaeria turcica)基因组数据库,鉴定并获得GPCRs超家族基因及其基因组定位;采用MEGA 6.0软件进行系统进化分析;通过通用样品数据系统(generalized sample data system,GSDS)工具进行基因结构分析;利用InterPro和SMART工具分析GPCRs的保守结构域.进一步利用qRT-PCR技术,对所确定的GPCR基因在分生孢子发育形成侵染结构的过程中不同阶段的相对表达量进行分析.结果表明,在玉米大斑病菌基因组中至少有9个典型的GPCR,其中3个属氮源感应因子类,信息素受体和碳源感应因子类各2个,类环磷酸腺苷受体和真菌视蛋白类各1个.这些基因散布在玉米大斑病菌基因组中,且结构复杂多样,但所有成员编码产物均由N端、7个跨膜结构域、3个胞内环、3个胞外环及C端组成.每个跨膜结构域包含20～25个氨基酸.以分生孢子为对照,所有基因在附着胞成熟时期接种后12 h(12 hours post inoculation,12 hpi)均显著下调(P＜0.05);除基因StRtc1和Stfdd123以外,全部基因整体变化趋势均呈现上调/持平(3 hpi)-上调(6 hpi)-下调(12 hpi)-上调(24 hpi)的规律,尤其在侵入丝形成时期(24 hpi)显著上调(P＜0.05).在附着胞形成时期(6 hpi),仅StSte2p和StRtc2表达显著上调.St Rtc1和Stfdd123在各阶段中的表达量与对照差异不显著或显著降低.本研究为深入解析植物病原真菌GPCR超家族的功能提供了理论依据.     

《生物入侵与生态安全》教学改革的探索与实践

根据生物入侵与生态安全课程的性质和具体特点,改革其教学理念、教学内容、教学方式方法及考核评价体系,并分析了已取得的成效,旨在达到培养"双创型"人才的目标。     

Cultivation of Jatropha curcas L. leads to pronounced mycorrhizal community differences

Plantations of Jatropha curcas for biodiesel production in tropical and sub-tropical regions are currently booming. Although Jatropha species are well known for synthesizing a range of toxicants, the effects of J. curcas monoculture on the symbiotic status of staple crops and trees have hardly been investigated. We transferred to the greenhouse soil samples collected from 3 J. curcas plantations established 1, 2 and 15 years ago in Senegal, together with soil samples from the corresponding adjacent fallow plots. We tested whether the modification of the original chemical and microbial soil properties induced by the development of J. curcas could alter the growth of common local crops (millet, cowpea) and of a local tree (Acacia seyal), all grown in pots. We also investigated effects at the scale of the root mycorrhizal community by determining root colonization patterns (frequency, intensity) and taxonomic diversity (18S rDNA sequencing). Pronounced compositional shifts in root mycorrhizal communities were almost systematically observed between Glomeraceae and Gigasporaceae, or in some cases within Glomeraceae. Biomass and N–P shoot contents were often higher in J. curcas-grown soils. In conclusion, the altered composition of the soil mycorrhizal communities in response to the development of J. curcas did not have detrimental effects on local staple crops. The functional consequences of such modified mycorrhizal assemblages should now be further investigated under more stressful conditions.     

微卫星分子标记在入侵生物学中的应用

微卫星分子标记是一种新型的分子标记,具有多态性高、共显性遗传、重复性高、易检测等优点,在生物生态和进化研究中得到了广泛的应用。本文概述了微卫星分子标记在入侵生物来源鉴定、杂交和基因渗透、瓶颈效应以及入侵因素等方面的应用进展,并对微卫星分子标记在入侵生物学的应用前景进行了展望。     

Influence of the proximity and amount of human development and roads on the occurrence of the red imported fire ant in the lower Florida Keys

We examined the influence of both the proximity and extent of human developments and paved roads on the presence of the predatory, non-indigenous, red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta). This species was inadvertently introduced into the United States at the port of Mobile, Alabama, around 1930 and rapidly spread to many southeastern states, including Florida. More recently, S. invicta colonized the Florida Keys, an area with a high proportion of rare and endemic vertebrate and invertebrate species. We placed bait transects in transitional salt-marsh, pineland, and hardwood hammocks on 13 of the lower Florida Keys and compared habitat type, the shortest distance of the bait transect to a development or road, and area of development and roads 50, 70, 100, and 150 m around each bait transect for areas with and without red imported fire ants. Red imported fire ants were detected on 21 of the 80 transects and were equally abundant in all habitat types. While all of the development and road variables differed significantly between bait transects with and without red imported fire ants, transects that were closest to roads and that had the largest amount of development within a 150 m radii had the highest probability of presence of red imported fire ants. Recovery efforts for endangered species in areas invaded by red imported fire ants should include analyses of the cumulative impacts of roads and developments in areas near protected lands.     

Recolonization of methyl bromide sterilized soils under four different field conditions

Summary The course of recovery in biological activity was assessed in the top 5 cm of undisturbed soil cores (29.7 cm diameter, 30 cm deep) that had been fumigated in the laboratory with methyl bromide. The cores were returned to their original pasture and forest sites, two with a moderate and two with a high rainfall, and untreated soils at all sites served as baselines. Sampling took place over 166 days (midsummer to midwinter). Microbial biomass (as measured by fumigation-extraction and substrate-induced respiration procedures) and dehydrogenase activity both recovered rapidly, but remained consistently lower in the fumigated than in untreated samples at both forest sites and at the moister of the two pasture sites. Bacterial numbers also recovered rapidly. Fungal hyphal lengths were, on average over 166 days, 25% lower in the fumigated soils. Levels of mineral N were initially highest in the fumigated soils, but declined with time. Fumigation generally had no detectable effects on the subsequent rates of net N mineralization and little effect on nitrification rates. Fumigation almost totally eliminated protozoa, with one to three species being recovered on day 0; the numbers recovered most rapidly in the moist forest soil and slowly in the dry pasture soil. The recoionization rate of protozoan species was similar in all soils, with species numbers on day 110 being 33 and 34 in the fumigated and untreated soils, respectively. Nematodes were eliminated by fumigation; recolonization was first detected on day 26 but by day 166, nematode numbers were still lower in fumigated than in untreated soils, the abundance being 10 and 62 g^-1 soil and diversity 10 and 31 species, respectively. Overall, the results suggest that protozoan and nematode populations and diversities could provide a useful medium-term ecological index of the recovery in comprehensive soil biological activity following major soil pollution or disturbance.     

Riparian scrub recovery after clearing of invasive alien trees in headwater streams of the Western Cape, South Africa

Headwater rivers are the predominant kind of aquatic ecosystem in South Africa’s Cape Floristic Region. Invasion by alien woody taxa (especially Acacia longifolia and Acacia mearnsii) have altered these rivers in recent decades, replacing indigenous vegetation and altering ecosystem functioning. Aliens have been systematically cleared in watercourses since 1995 as part of a national program (“Working for Water”) to increase water production and improve water quality. Cleared sites are mostly left to recover to their pre-invasion state without additional intervention. We compared the vegetation of seven rivers that vary in their extent of invasion and clearing to identify factors limiting recolonization. Dense invasions cleared 3-6 years before the survey differ in vegetation structure and composition from uninvaded or lightly invaded/cleared riparian reaches in the following ways: (1) diminished extent of indigenous trees in the canopy and increased importance of shrubs or reinvading alien trees, (2) reduced species richness, (3) reduced likelihood of occupancy for more than one-third of common, indigenous species, and (4) reduced incidence of indigenous tree regeneration. Overall, indigenous tree regeneration is very low and not disturbance-triggered which will likely result in slow recovery without additional intervention. We recommend focusing active revegetation on common riparian scrub trees (i.e., Metrosideros angustifolia, Brachylaena neriifolia, Brabejum stellatifolium, and Erica caffra). These species tolerate open habitats favored by alien trees, eventually forming closed canopies required by shade-tolerant species. Accelerating establishment of these small trees is likely critical for shifting cleared riparian corridors from a state that favors alien reinvasion. Effective establishment strategies will need to be developed in the context of hydrologic impairment, since alien-invaded rivers in this region typically have reduced flow.     

Infection of an invasive frog Eleutherodactylus coqui by the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in Hawaii

The chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis has contributed to declines and extinctions of amphibians worldwide. B. dendrobatidis is known to infect the frog Eleutherodactylus coqui in its native Puerto Rico. E. coqui was accidentally introduced into Hawaii in the late 1980s, where there are now hundreds of populations. B. dendrobatidis was being considered as a biological control agent for E. coqui because there are no native amphibians in Hawaii. Using a DNA-based assay, we tested 382 E. coqui from Hawaii for B. dendrobatidis and found that 2.4% are already infected. We found infected frogs in four of 10 study sites and on both the islands of Hawaii and Maui. This is the first report of B. dendrobatidis in wild populations in Hawaii. As the range of E. coqui expands, it may become a vector for the transmittance of B. dendrobatidis to geographic areas where B. dendrobatidis does not yet exist.     

The recent and rapid spread of the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) in Great Britain

This paper reviews the current, apparently rapid spread of zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) in Britain, discusses the possible causes of this spread, considers the potential ecological consequences, and looks at what measures could be undertaken to minimise the impacts of zebra mussels and other invasive pests in Britain's freshwaters. Five out of 27 major water companies reported increases in their regions between 2000 and 2002 and a further three acknowledged their presence. Increases were also reported by the Environment Agency, Broads Authority, angling clubs and boatyards. No one interviewed reported a decrease in zebra mussels between 2000 and 2002. The most notable increases have been in southern, central and eastern England. A newly recorded population of zebra mussels in the River Darent, Kent, contained zebra mussels in dense mats of up to 11,000 individuals m⁻² and up to 20 cm in depth. There is evidence that the ecology of recently invaded sites has been deleteriously affected. A fishing lake in Lancashire has experienced increased water clarity and reduced fish biomass coincidental with the arrival of zebra mussels, while a newly recorded population in Barden Lake, Kent, appears to be having a deleterious impact on native unionid mussels, particularly the swan mussel (Anodonta cygnea) and, more, recently the painter's mussel (Unio pictorum). Repeated surveys in the River Thames, River Great Ouse and Barden Lake showed that the proportion of unionid mussels infested by zebra mussels had increased significantly in all sites studied during the past one to five years.