On the role of the vagus in the control of aldosterone secretion

Aldosterone in adrenal venous blood of dogs is increased by constriction and decreased by release of constriction of the inferior vena cava. Section of the cervical vagi did not affect the rise of aldosterone but prevented its fall. The receptors for stimuli to increases of aldosterone secretion may not be the same as those for stimuli to decreases.     

鼻息肉患者T淋巴细胞的活化状态及其细胞因子的分泌

目的分析T淋巴细胞膜表面标志的表达及其细胞因子的分泌,了解人鼻息肉T淋巴细胞的活化状态及Th1/Th2反应的特点。方法采用流式细胞术检测45例鼻息肉患者鼻息肉组织、外周血中T细胞膜表面标志CD3、CD69的表达和Th1代表性细胞因子IFN-γ、Th2代表性细胞因子IL-4的分泌水平,并与正常人下鼻甲黏膜及外周血的相应指标进行比较。结果（1）患者鼻息肉组织及外周血T细胞均表达CD69分子,在鼻息肉组织局部CD69分子的表达更高（P〈0.01）。而在正常人下鼻甲黏膜中几乎未见CD3^＋CD69^＋细胞。（2）鼻息肉组织及患者外周血T细胞中均检测到IL-4、IFN-γ的表达,而在正常人下鼻甲黏膜中几乎未见CD3^＋IL-4^＋和CD3^＋IFN-γ^＋细胞。与正常人相比,患者外周血中IL-4、IFN-γ的含量均升高（P〈0.01）;与同一患者外周血相比,鼻息肉组织中IL-4的含量增高（P〈0.01）而IFN-γ的含量降低（P〈0.01）。结论鼻息肉组织中的T细胞高度表达CD69分子,处于免疫活化状态,产生Th1/Th2混合模式的细胞因子,与外周血相比Th细胞因子分泌优势发生改变,可能与鼻息肉＂微环境＂形成及黏膜免疫系统有关。     

A microdomain for protein secretion in Gram-positive bacteria

Gram-positive bacteria face unique challenges in generating biologically active conformations for their exported proteins because they lack a dedicated compartment for folding secreted polypeptides. We have discovered that protein secretion by way of the general secretory (Sec) pathway in the important human pathogen Streptococcus pyogenes proceeds through a single microdomain. Unlike other mechanisms for asymmetry involving the Sec pathway, proteins destined for secretion are targeted to a single locus distal to either cell pole that has specialized to contain the Sec translocons. This subcellular organization may represent a paradigm for secretion common to other Gram-positive pathogens with profound implications for pathogenesis.     

Pancreatic beta-cell web: its possible role in insulin secretion

A cortical band of fine microfilaments is consistently observed in the beta cells of the rat pancreas. Alteration of this cell web by cytochalasin B is associated with an enhancement of glucose-induced secretion of insulin by isolated islets. The microfilamentous web of the beta cell may play an important role in the emiocytosis of insulin secretory granules, by controlling their access to the cell membrane.     

副溶血性弧菌Ⅲ型分泌系统与Ⅵ型分泌系统的研究进展

副溶血性弧菌(Vibrio parahaemolyticus,VP)是一种常见的革兰氏阴性细菌,主要分布在海洋、海口和河口沉积物中,能够引起人急性肠胃炎、伤口感染和败血症,同时危害水产品养殖业。由该菌引起的食物中毒事件在全世界范围内频繁发生,该菌被认为是微生物性食物中毒的主要病原菌之一。影响副溶血性弧菌致病性的毒力因素包括溶血素、黏附因子、分泌系统等,尤其在分泌系统中,Ⅲ型分泌系统(TypeⅢsecretion systems, T3SS)和Ⅵ型分泌系统(T6SS)与副溶血性弧菌致病性密切相关。T3SS是一种多亚基针状结构,将分泌蛋白通过供体细胞质直接注入受体细胞质;T6SS是一种接触依赖性蛋白分泌装置,将毒素直接注入目标细胞内。通过对Ⅲ型分泌系统和Ⅵ型分泌系统的研究进展进行梳理,从这两种分泌系统的结构出发,并对其功能和调控机制分别进行分析比较,指出了二者在效应蛋白及产生毒素上的不同,找出了二者与副溶血性弧菌定植的关系,以期通过这两者的联系进而深入了解副溶血性弧菌的致病机制,为防治该菌提供科学指导。     

A role for the sodium pump in photoreception in Limulus

The membranes of photoreceptor cells in Limulus have an electrogenic sodium pump which contributes directly to membrane potential and whose activity is changed by light. These light-induced changes in pump activity underlie the receptor potential.     

Entamoeba histolytica causes intestinal secretion: role of serotonin

Lysates of the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica altered active electrolyte transport when present on the serosal surface of rabbit ileum and rat colon. The lysate-induced effects on electrolyte transport were similar to those caused by serotonin, and were blocked by bufotenine, an analog known to inhibit the action of serotonin. The transport effects were partially inhibited by antibody to serotonin. The amebic lysates were shown to contain serotonin by radioimmunoassay, high-performance liquid chromatography, and thin-layer chromatography. These results suggest that the serotonin present in Entamoeba histolytica may be important in the diarrhea seen in amebiasis.     

A role for the macaque anterior cingulate gyrus in social valuation

Complex human social interaction is disrupted when the frontal lobe is damaged in disease, and in extreme cases patients are described as having acquired sociopathy. We compared, in macaques, the effects of lesions in subdivisions of the anterior cingulate and the orbitofrontal cortices believed to be anatomically homologous to those damaged in such patients. We show that the anterior cingulate gyrus in male macaques is critical for normal patterns of social interest in other individual male or female macaques. Conversely, the orbitofrontal cortex lesion had a marked effect only on responses to mildly fear-inducing stimuli. These results suggest that damage to the anterior cingulate gyrus may be the cause of changes in social interaction seen after frontal lobe damage.     

A centrosome-independent role for gamma-TuRC proteins in the spindle assembly checkpoint

The spindle assembly checkpoint guards the fidelity of chromosome segregation. It requires the close cooperation of cell cycle regulatory proteins and cytoskeletal elements to sense spindle integrity. The role of the centrosome, the organizing center of the microtubule cytoskeleton, in the spindle checkpoint is unclear. We found that the molecular requirements for a functional spindle checkpoint included components of the large gamma-tubulin ring complex (gamma-TuRC). However, their localization at the centrosome and centrosome integrity were not essential for this function. Thus, the spindle checkpoint can be activated at the level of microtubule nucleation.     

A proton buffering role for silica in diatoms

For 40 million years, diatoms have dominated the reverse weathering of silica on Earth. These photosynthetic protists take up dissolved silicic acid from the water and precipitate opaline silica to form their cell wall. We show that the biosilica of diatoms is an effective pH buffer, enabling the enzymatic conversion of bicarbonate to CO2, an important step in inorganic carbon acquisition by these organisms. Because diatoms are responsible for one-quarter of global primary production and for a large fraction of the carbon exported to the deep sea, the global cycles of Si and C may be linked mechanistically.     

A role for DNA-PK in retroviral DNA integration

Retroviral DNA integration is catalyzed by the viral protein integrase. Here, it is shown that DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK), a host cell protein, also participates in the reaction. DNA-PK-deficient murine scid cells infected with three different retroviruses showed a substantial reduction in retroviral DNA integration and died by apoptosis. Scid cell killing was not observed after infection with an integrase-defective virus, suggesting that abortive integration is the trigger for death in these DNA repair-deficient cells. These results suggest that the initial events in retroviral integration are detected as DNA damage by the host cell and that completion of the integration process requires the DNA-PK-mediated repair pathway.     

A role for histone acetylation in the developmental regulation of VDJ recombination

VDJ recombination is developmentally regulated in vivo by enhancer-dependent changes in the accessibility of chromosomal recombination signal sequences to the recombinase, but the molecular nature of these changes is unknown. Here histone H3 acetylation was measured along versions of a transgenic VDJ recombination reporter and the endogenous T cell receptor alpha/delta locus. Enhancer activity was shown to impart long-range, developmentally regulated changes in H3 acetylation, and H3 acetylation status was tightly linked to VDJ recombination. H3 hyperacetylation is proposed as a molecular mechanism coupling enhancer activity to accessibility for VDJ recombination.     

A critical role for eosinophils in allergic airways remodeling

Features of chronic asthma include airway hyperresponsiveness, inflammatory infiltrates, and structural changes in the airways, termed remodeling. The contribution of eosinophils, cells associated with asthma and allergy, remains to be established. We show that in mice with a total ablation of the eosinophil lineage, increases in airway hyperresponsiveness and mucus secretion were similar to those observed in wild-type mice, but eosinophil-deficient mice were significantly protected from peribronchiolar collagen deposition and increases in airway smooth muscle. These data suggest that eosinophils contribute substantially to airway remodeling but are not obligatory for allergen-induced lung dysfunction, and support an important role for eosinophil-targeted therapies in chronic asthma.     

A role for flavin monooxygenase-like enzymes in auxin biosynthesis

Although auxin is known to regulate many processes in plant development and has been studied for over a century, the mechanisms whereby plants produce it have remained elusive. Here we report the characterization of a dominant Arabidopsis mutant, yucca, which contains elevated levels of free auxin. YUCCA encodes a flavin monooxygenase-like enzyme and belongs to a family that includes at least nine other homologous Arabidopsis genes, a subset of which appears to have redundant functions. Results from tryptophan analog feeding experiments and biochemical assays indicate that YUCCA catalyzes hydroxylation of the amino group of tryptamine, a rate-limiting step in tryptophan-dependent auxin biosynthesis.     

A role for skin gammadelta T cells in wound repair

Gammadelta T cell receptor-bearing dendritic epidermal T cells (DETCs) found in murine skin recognize antigen expressed by damaged or stressed keratinocytes. Activated DETCs produce keratinocyte growth factors (KGFs) and chemokines, raising the possibility that DETCs play a role in tissue repair. We performed wound healing studies and found defects in keratinocyte proliferation and tissue reepithelialization in the absence of wild-type DETCs. In vitro skin organ culture studies demonstrated that adding DETCs or recombinant KGF restored normal wound healing in gammadelta DETC-deficient skin. We propose that DETCs recognize antigen expressed by injured keratinocytes and produce factors that directly affect wound repair.     

A critical role for IL-21 in regulating immunoglobulin production

The cytokine interleukin-21 (IL-21) is closely related to IL-2 and IL-15, and their receptors all share the common cytokine receptor gamma chain, gammac, which is mutated in humans with X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency disease (XSCID). We demonstrate that, although mice deficient in the receptor for IL-21 (IL-21R) have normal lymphoid development, after immunization, these animals have higher production of the immunoglobulin IgE, but lower IgG1, than wild-type animals. Mice lacking both IL-4 and IL-21R exhibited a significantly more pronounced phenotype, with dysgammaglobulinemia, characterized primarily by a severely impaired IgG response. Thus, IL-21 has a significant influence on the regulation of B cell function in vivo and cooperates with IL-4. This suggests that these gammac-dependent cytokines may be those whose inactivation is primarily responsible for the B cell defect in humans with XSCID.     

A role for peroxisomes in photomorphogenesis and development of Arabidopsis

The nuclear protein DET1 is a central repressor of photomorphogenesis in plants. We have identified the molecular lesion in ted3, a mutation that dominantly suppresses the phenotypes of det1-1. TED3 encodes a peroxisomal protein (AtPex2p) essential for Arabidopsis growth. Developmental defects and the abnormal expression of many genes in det1 are rescued by ted3. ted3 also partially suppresses another pleiotropic de-etiolated mutant cop1. Thus, peroxisomes, whose functions are still largely unexplored, play a key role in a photomorphogenetic pathway negatively regulated by the DET1 and COP proteins.     

A direct role for dual oxidase in Drosophila gut immunity

Because the mucosal epithelia are in constant contact with large numbers of microorganisms, these surfaces must be armed with efficient microbial control systems. Here, we show that the Drosophila nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase enzyme, dual oxidase (dDuox), is indispensable for gut antimicrobial activities. Adult flies in which dDuox expression is silenced showed a marked increase in mortality rate even after a minor infection through ingestion of microbe-contaminated food. This could be restored by the specific reintroduction of dDuox, demonstrating that this oxidase generates a unique epithelial oxidative burst that limits microbial proliferation in the gut. Thus, oxidant-mediated antimicrobial responses are not restricted to the phagocytes, but rather are used more broadly, including in mucosal barrier epithelia.