Dynamics of apoptosis-related gene expression during follicular development in yak

The potential reproduction power of domestic animals is limited by a complicated follicular atresia process. P53, caspase-9 (Casp9), Bax, Bcl-2 and Fas play a crucial role in the ovarian mitochondrion-dependent apoptosis and death receptor pathway. In accordance with this study, the expression levels of Casp9, Bax, Bcl-2 and Fas were analysed in ovaries and oviducts of yak by immunohistochemistry (IHC). P53 and the above in ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) from atretic (3–6 mm) to healthy follicles (6–8 mm) and in oviducts were examined from the luteal phase to the follicular phase during the oestrous circle by Western blot (WB) and real-time PCR (RT-PCR). Results demonstrated that typical classic apoptotic factors Casp9, Bax, Bcl-2 and Fas were expressed in the cytoplasm and zonal pellucida of oocytes, primordial follicles, primary follicles, ovarian surface epithelium, ovarian GCs, granular lutein cells, surface epithelia in oviduct uterotubal junction and oviduct ampulla during the luteal phase. RT-PCR and WB revealed that P53 and Fas significantly increased in GCs of atretic follicles. P53 and Casp9 increased in oviduct epithelium during the luteal phase, but Fas was unchanged. A contrary tendency was noted in Bcl-2 and Bax expression. Overall, P53 and Fas play an essential role in inducing GC apoptosis, and Bax, Bcl-2, Casp9 and P53 are involved in oviduct epithelial regeneration in yak.     

Ss-Bi1 encodes a putative BAX inhibitor-1 protein that is required for full virulence of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a destructive necrotrophic plant pathogen with global distribution. Although S. sclerotiorum has been studied extensively, substantial research on aspects of the pathogen's ability to cause disease is still needed. Bax inhibitor-1 protein functions as a suppressor of programmed cell death and is involved in the response to biotic and abiotic stress in animals, plants and yeast. In this study, we functionally characterized a putative Bax inhibitor-1 protein, Ss-Bi1, from S. sclerotiorum. Ss-Bi1 is predicted to contain a BAX inhibitor-1-like super family domain and shows significant homology with many BAX inhibitor-1 proteins. High expression levels of Ss-Bi1 were observed in hyphae under various stresses. Targeted silencing of Ss-Bi1 resulted in reduced virulence in host plants. Ss-Bi1 gene-silenced strains were more sensitive to heat stress and ER stress than the wild-type strain. The results suggest that Ss-Bi1 encodes a putative BAX inhibitor-1 protein that is required for full virulence of S. sclerotiorum.     

鸭腔上囊胚胎及胚后发育期凋亡相关蛋白的免疫组化分析

研究天府肉鸭腔上囊胚胎及胚后发育期Bcl-2、Bax、Fas、FasL蛋白的表达。将20只天府肉鸭分为4组,即24天胚龄(E24),胚后3、8、29周龄(P3、P8、P29),采用免疫组化技术。结果显示,Bcl-2、Bax、Fas、FasL在各组滤泡淋巴细胞中均有表达,FasL还表达于滤泡间上皮。滤泡皮质和髓质淋巴细胞Bcl-2阳性率呈递减的变化趋势(髓质P3～8除外);皮质和髓质淋巴细胞Bax阳性率在E24～P8恒定,P29上升;皮质和髓质淋巴细胞Bcl-2/Bax值呈下降趋势,但皮质在P3～8恒定,髓质在P3～8上升;滤泡皮质和髓质淋巴细胞Fas阳性率在E24～P3上升,P3～8下降,P8～29上升;皮质和髓质淋巴细胞FasL阳性率变化规律与Fas相似,但皮质在P3～8恒定。滤泡皮质淋巴细胞Bcl-2阳性率及Bcl-2/Bax值在E24～P8明显高于髓质,在P29则显著低于髓质;皮质淋巴细胞Bax阳性率在E24～P8与髓质无显著差异,在P29则明显高于髓质;皮质淋巴细胞Fas和FasL阳性率在E24～P8明显低于髓质,在P29则显著高于髓质。结果提示,Bcl-2、Bax、Fas、FasL是鸭腔上囊胚胎及胚...     

Preventive effects of Clostridium butyricum on gastric ulceration induced by pylorus ligature in mice

AIM: To investigate the preventive effects of Clostridium butyricum (C. butyricum) on the type of pylorus ligated gastric ulcer (GU) in mice and the underlying mechanisms. METHODS: ICR mice were randomly divided into 4 groups: sham operation group, model group, C. butyricum pretreatment group and omeprazole pretreatment group. Gastric pyloric ligation was adopted to establish GU model in mice. The gastric juice was collected to measure the content of gastric free mucus, the pH of gastric juice and the activity of pepsin. The gastric tissues were collected for routine HE staining to observe the pathological changes. The content of glycogen was detected by PAS staining. The protein expression of Bax and Bcl-2 in the gastric mucosa was also assessed by immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: The HE and PAS staining showed that the C. butyricum pretreatment obviously attenuated the mucosa lesion induced by ligation. Compared with model group, the pH of gastric juice was significantly raised. The activity of pepsin fell off in C. butyricum group, which was lower than that in omeprazole group. In comparison with model group, the content of gastric free mucus was dramatically increased and PAS staining showed a significant rise in C. butyricum group, but not in omeprazole group. The protein expression of Bax was decreased and the protein expression of Bcl-2 was upgraded in C. butyricum group than those in model group. CONCLUSION: C. butyricum protects gastric mucosa against the challenge of pylorus ligation in mice and its mechanism may be related to inhibiting gastric acid secretion and the activation of pepsin, increasing the production of gastric free mucus, strengthening the expression of bcl-2 gene and inhibiting the expression of bax gene.     

Construction of Tobacco Bax lnhibitor-1 ihpRNA Gene Silencing Vector and Transformation into Agrobacterium tumefaciens EHA105

The plasmid pGSA1285 was first modified by substituting its GUS sequence with the Chalcone synthase intron fragment from vector pFGC5941 to get the plant silencing expression vector that contained Kanamycin resistance site and was named as pGSA2285. Using PCR-based amplification, two different restriction sites at both ends of tobacco Bax inhibitor-1 (NtBI-1) gene were created, respectively, which made the construction of ihpRNA gene silencing vector more efficiently. Then, NtBI-1 genes were inserted into Multiple Cloning Site (MCS) of pGSA2285 respectively to form Bax inhibitor-1 ihpRNA gene silencing vector, named as pGSA4285, containing sense and anti-sense BI-1 sequence which was spliced by chalcone synthase intron. Combined PCR identification and enzyme restriction analyses, the results showed that Bax inhibitor-1 ihpRNA gene silencing vector had been constructed and transferred into Agrobacterium tumefaciens EHA105 successfully, which laid a foundation for the further study on the function of BI-1 in plant PCD regulation.     

miR-193a在MDBK细胞中诱导细胞凋亡的研究

本试验旨在研究miR-193a在致细胞病变型牛病毒性腹泻病毒(cp BVDV)感染MDBK细胞过程中诱导细胞凋亡的分子机制。试验利用TargetScan和Microcosm Targets等生物信息学在线软件预测凋亡相关的miR-193a靶基因Bax,并利用双荧光素酶报告基因系统验证miR-193a的靶基因;用过表达miR-193a的慢病毒pre-miR-193a-lv和抑制miR-193a表达的慢病毒pre-miR-193a-inhibitor-lv分别侵染MDBK细胞,48 h后收集细胞,然后用实时荧光定量PCR、Western blotting和流式细胞仪检测凋亡通路中Bax的表达水平及MDBK细胞凋亡率。结果预测并验证了miR-193a的靶基因为Bax;双荧光素酶报告基因分析结果显示miR-193a能直接结合到Bax 3'UTR区域中的miRNA反应位点,并极显著下调Bax的表达水平(P<0.01);流式细胞仪检测凋亡率结果显示,感染pre-miR-193a-lv慢病毒的MDBK细胞凋亡率极显著升高(P<0.01)。结果表明miR-193a能直接靶向凋亡通路中Bax基因,从而促进凋亡的发生。     

从小鼠17.5d胚胎cDNA文库中筛选Bax相互作用蛋白

为了研究Bax可能形成的在细胞凋亡中起作用的蛋白复合体,选择Bcl-2家族中的前凋亡因子Bax作为诱饵蛋白,对17.5 d小鼠cDNA文库进行酵母双杂交筛选和BLAST,找到1个RACK1蛋白。为进一步验证上述酵母中Bax与RACK1的结合,用Bax与RACK1的真核表达载体,以免疫共沉淀和免疫荧光染色验证其相互作用。利用293T细胞过量表达Bax和RACK1蛋白,收获裂解液后进行免疫共沉淀试验,结果表明,Bax和RACK1在体内仍可形成复合体;在293T细胞中共转Bax和RACK1质粒,用各自荧光抗体标记,然后用激光共聚焦显微镜观察,发现Bax和RACK1可以共定位。     

Role of ghrelin in regulating rabbit ovarian function and the response to LH and IGF-I

The aim of these in vivo and in vitro studies was to examine the role of ghrelin in the control of plasma hormone concentrations, the proliferation, apoptosis and secretory activity of ovarian granulosa cells and the response of these cells to hormonal treatments. Female rabbits were injected with ghrelin (10 μg/animal/day for one week before ovulation induced by 25 IU PMSG and 0.25 IU LHRH). On the day of ovulation, blood samples were collected and analyzed for concentrations of progesterone (P₄), testosterone (T), estradiol (E₂), estrone-sulphate (ES), insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and leptin (L) by RIA. Some control and ghrelin-treated animals were killed in the periovulatory period, their ovaries were weighed and granulosa cells were isolated and cultured for 2 d. Cell proliferation (expression of PCNA) and apoptosis (expression of TdT) were evaluated by immunocytochemistry and TUNEL respectively. Secretion of P₄, T, E₂, IGF-I, and prostaglandin F (PGF) by granulosa cells cultured with and without LH or IGF-I (1, 10 or 100 ng/ml medium) was assessed by RIA. The remaining control and treated animals were kept until parturition, while the number, viability and body weight of pups were recorded.     

雌激素对去卵巢大鼠大脑皮质和海马中Bcl-2和Bax蛋白表达的影响

利用免疫组织化学超敏SP法检测SD大鼠摘除卵巢及外源性17β-雌二醇治疗后大脑皮质和海马中Bcl-2和Bax蛋白表达的变化.结果显示,摘除双侧卵巢后,大鼠大脑皮质和海马中Bcl-2不同程度降低,而Bax的表达出现不同程度的上升,17β-雌二醇治疗后,2种蛋白的表达基本恢复正常.表明雌激素能够不同程度的上调大脑皮质和海马中Bcl-2蛋白的表达,下调Bax蛋白的表达,从而对大脑皮质及海马神经元具有保护作用.     

Effect of fucoxanthin on growth and apoptosis of HSC-T6 cells

AIM: To explore the effect of fucoxanthin (Fu) on the growth and apoptosis of HSC-T6 cells. METHODS: HSC-T6 cells were divided into blank control group, negative control group and drug groups (treated with different concentrations of Fu). The cell viability was detected by CCK-8 assay at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h after Fu treatment. The cell cycle distribution and apoptotic rate were analyzed by flow cytometry. The protein expression of Bcl-2 and Bax were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with blank control group, the viability of HSC-T6 cells was inhibited by Fu at concentrations of 15~75 μmol/L in a dose- and time-dependent manner (P < 0.01). The cell ratio of G₁ phase was significantly decreased (P < 0.01) and the cell ratio of S phase and G₂ phase was significantly increased (P < 0.01) in 60 μmol/L Fu group after 24 h. The cell ratio of G₁ phase was significantly decreased (P < 0.05) and the cell ratio of S phase and G₂ phase was significantly increased (P < 0.05) in 15 μmol/L and 30 μmol/L Fu groups in a dose-dependent manner after 48 h. The early cell apoptotic rates and total cell apoptotic rates were significantly increased in the Fu treatment groups in a dose-dependent manner (P < 0.05). The protein expression of Bax was significantly increased in the Fu treatment groups and the protein expression of Bcl-2 was significantly decreased in 30 μmol/L and 60 μmol/L Fu groups (P < 0.05).CONCLUSION: Fu inhibits the growth of HSC-T6 cells possiblely via arresting the cell cycle at S phase and G₂ phase. The apoptosis of HSC-T6 cells induced by Fu might be via down-regulating the protein expression of Bcl-2 and up-regulating the protein expression of Bax.