Selective solubilization of a protein component of the red cell membrane

Approximately 20 percent of the membrane-bound protein of erythrocyte ghosts can be solubilized and obtained free of other membrane components by dialysis against adenosine triphosphate and 2-mercaptoethanol. This protein forms one major band on polyacrylamide gels and a single boundary in free-boundary electrophoresis, and it undergoes polymerization in the presence of divalent cations to form coiled filaments visible by electron microscopy. Antibodies to this membrane protein react specifically with red blood cells or their membrane ghosts but do not react with serum, erythrocyte cytoplasm, or other blood cells. The functional role of this protein is unknown, but it appears to be involved in maintaiining the structure of the red cell membrane. We suggest that this protein be called Spectrin since it is obtained from membrane ghosts.     

Emulating membrane protein evolution by rational design

How do integral membrane proteins evolve in size and complexity? Using the small multidrug-resistance protein EmrE from Escherichia coli as a model, we experimentally demonstrated that the evolution of membrane proteins composed of two homologous but oppositely oriented domains can occur in a small number of steps: An original dual-topology protein evolves, through a gene-duplication event, to a heterodimer formed by two oppositely oriented monomers. This simple evolutionary pathway can explain the frequent occurrence of membrane proteins with an internal pseudo-two-fold symmetry axis in the plane of the membrane.     

Structural basis for tail-anchored membrane protein biogenesis by the Get3-receptor complex

Tail-anchored (TA) proteins are involved in cellular processes including trafficking, degradation, and apoptosis. They contain a C-terminal membrane anchor and are posttranslationally delivered to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane by the Get3 adenosine triphosphatase interacting with the hetero-oligomeric Get1/2 receptor. We have determined crystal structures of Get3 in complex with the cytosolic domains of Get1 and Get2 in different functional states at 3.0, 3.2, and 4.6 angstrom resolution. The structural data, together with biochemical experiments, show that Get1 and Get2 use adjacent, partially overlapping binding sites and that both can bind simultaneously to Get3. Docking to the Get1/2 complex allows for conformational changes in Get3 that are required for TA protein insertion. These data suggest a molecular mechanism for nucleotide-regulated delivery of TA proteins.     

Ciliary orientation: controlled by cell membrane or by intracellular fibrils?

The cirri of the ciliate Euplotes all asslumne the "reversed" orientation whenever the cell is depolarized and the "forward" orientation whenever the cell is hyperpolarized. Potenitial changes arise spontaneolusly or are induced by electrical or mechanical stimuli. The orientation responses of thte cirri are appatently independent of intracellular "neuromotor" fibrils previously assigned a coordinating function, as they persist after the fibrils are transected.     

Uncoupling of an epithelial cell membrane junction by calcium-ion removal

Calcium takes part in maintaining ion communication between salivary gland cells (Chironomus thummi). Its withdrawal from the cell systems results in virtual disconnection of ion communication, at Ca(++) concentrations which do not noticeably affect cell adhesion. The junctional membrane surfaces. which are normally quite freely permeable to ions, become as impermeable as the nonjunctional membrane surfaces; each cell seals itself off irreversibly as a unit. In maintaining ion communication Mg(++) substitutes for Ca(++)     

Uncoupling of a nerve cell membrane junction by calcium-ion removal

Calcium ion participates in maintaining electrical connections between the nerve cells of Retzius (Hirudo medicinalis). The conductance across the junction between these cells decreases with decreasing concentration of free, extracellular Ca(++) At a certain level of Ca(++) withdrawal from the cell system, junctional conductance reaches a critical low point at which the cells become functionally disconnected: the nerve impulses which are normally discharged in synchrony by the cells become asynchronous. These effects of Ca(++) on junctional connection are irreversible, in contrast to those on nonjunctional surface membrane permeability.     

Activation-induced B cell fates are selected by intracellular stochastic competition

In response to stimulation, B lymphocytes pursue a large number of distinct fates important for immune regulation. Whether each cell's fate is determined by external direction, internal stochastic processes, or directed asymmetric division is unknown. Measurement of times to isotype switch, to develop into a plasmablast, and to divide or to die for thousands of cells indicated that each fate is pursued autonomously and stochastically. As a consequence of competition between these processes, censorship of alternative outcomes predicts intricate correlations that are observed in the data. Stochastic competition can explain how the allocation of a proportion of B cells to each cell fate is achieved. The B cell may exemplify how other complex cell differentiation systems are controlled.     

Determination of membrane protein structure by rotational resonance NMR: bacteriorhodopsin

Rotationally resonant magnetization exchange, a new nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technique for measuring internuclear distances between like spins in solids, was used to determine the distance between the C-8 and C-18 carbons of retinal in two model compounds and in the membrane protein bacteriorhodopsin. Magnetization transfer between inequivalent spins with an isotropic shift separation, delta, is driven by magic angle spinning at a speed omega r that matches the rotational resonance condition delta = n omega r, where n is a small integer. The distances measured in this way for both the 6-s-cis- and 6-s-trans-retinoic acid model compounds agreed well with crystallographically known distances. In bacteriorhodopsin the exchange trajectory between C-8 and C-18 was in good agreement with the internuclear distance for a 6-s-trans configuration [4.2 angstroms (A)] and inconsistent with that for a 6-s-cis configuration (3.1 A). The results illustrate that rotational resonance can be used for structural studies in membrane proteins and in other situations where diffraction and solution NMR techniques yield limited information.     

Conversion of a PI-anchored protein to an integral membrane protein by a single amino acid mutation

Qa-2, a cell-surface glycoprotein anchored by phosphatidylinositol (PI), is structurally related to the class I transplantation antigens H-2 K, D, and L, which are integral membrane glycoproteins. The predicted transmembrane segment of Qa-2 differs from those of H-2 K, D, and L by the presence of an aspartate in place of a valine at position 295. A single base change that replaced this aspartate with valine resulted in cell-surface Qa-2 molecules that were insensitive to hydrolysis by a PI-specific phospholipase C and more resistant to papain cleavage, properties shared by H-2D. Cells expressing Asp----Val mutant Qa-2 proteins were still able to attach a PI anchor to endogenous proteins such as Thy-1 and J11D. It therefore appears that this single amino acid change converts Qa-2 from a PI-linked form into an integral membrane protein.     

迟钝爱德华氏菌外膜蛋白基因工程表达产物的免疫原性

构建迟钝爱德华氏菌外膜蛋白重组表达载体后,表达纯化获得分子质量约53ku的外膜蛋白。将100尾日本鳗鲡均分为2组,分别腹腔注射牛血清白蛋白(BSA,0.5mg/mL)和迟钝爱德华氏菌外膜蛋白(Omp,0.5mg/mL)0.2mL/尾。于免疫后第7、14和28天采集鳗鲡血液、粘液、肝脏和肾脏,测定各时间点的补体活性、溶菌酶活性、全血细胞转化水平和血清抗体效价。结果发现,外膜蛋白组鳗鲡的补体活性于免疫后第7天极显著高于对照组;其抗体效价于第14天和第28天显著或极显著高于对照组。免疫后第28天以迟钝爱德华氏菌、嗜水气单胞菌和创伤弧菌(1.0×107 cfu)腹腔注射感染鳗鲡。结果发现,外膜蛋白组鳗鲡对迟钝爱德华氏菌、嗜水气单胞菌和创伤弧菌的相对免疫保护率分别为71.4%、50.0%和12.5%。表明鳗鲡注射迟钝爱德华氏菌基因工程表达外膜后显著提高了其对迟钝爱德华氏菌感染的抵抗力,对嗜水气单胞菌的感染也有明显的交叉保护效果,但对创伤弧菌的交叉保护效果较弱。     

Degradation of outer membrane protein A in Escherichia coli killing by neutrophil elastase

In determining the mechanism of neutrophil elastase (NE)-mediated killing of Escherichia coli, we found that NE degraded outer membrane protein A (OmpA), localized on the surface of Gram-negative bacteria. NE killed wild-type, but not OmpA-deficient, E. coli. Also, whereas NE-deficient mice had impaired survival in response to E. coli sepsis, as compared to wild-type mice, the presence or absence of NE had no influence on survival in response to sepsis that had been induced with OmpA-deficient E. coli. These findings define a mechanism of nonoxidative bacterial killing by NE and point to OmpA as a bacterial target in host defense.     

Activation of endothelial cell protease activated receptor 1 by the protein C pathway

The coagulant and inflammatory exacerbation in sepsis is counterbalanced by the protective protein C (PC) pathway. Activated PC (APC) was shown to use the endothelial cell PC receptor (EPCR) as a coreceptor for cleavage of protease activated receptor 1 (PAR1) on endothelial cells. Gene profiling demonstrated that PAR1 signaling could account for all APC-induced protective genes, including the immunomodulatory monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), which was selectively induced by activation of PAR1, but not PAR2. Thus, the prototypical thrombin receptor is the target for EPCR-dependent APC signaling, suggesting a role for this receptor cascade in protection from sepsis.     

Red cell membrane glycophorin labeling from within the lipid bilayer

Human red blood cell membranes were labeled from within the lipid bilayer by the apolar photosensitive reagent, 5-[125I]iodonaphthyl-1-azide. Glycophorin, the major sialoglycoprotein of the red cell membrane, was purified by two different methods; it contained approximately half of the total label incorporated into membrane proteins. The label was confined to the trypsin-insoluble peptide of glycophorin that includes a sequence of 20, mainly apolar, amino acids. These findings provide direct evidence that the labeled segment resides within the membrane in direct contact with the lipid bilayer, and support the suggestion that glycophorin spans the bilayer through its hydrophobic domain.     

Bacterial motility: membrane topology of the Escherichia coli MotB protein

The MotB protein of Escherichia coli is an essential component of the force generators that couple proton movement across the cytoplasmic membrane to rotation of the flagellar motors. The membrane topology of MotB was examined to explore the possibility that it might form a proton channel. MotB--alkaline phosphatase fusion proteins were constructed to identify likely periplasmic domains of the MotB molecule. Fusions distal to a putative membrane-spanning segment near the amino terminus of MotB exhibited alkaline phosphatase activity, indicating that an extensive carboxyl-terminal portion of MotB may be located on the periplasmic side of the membrane. Protease treatment of MotB in spheroplasts confirmed this view. The simple transmembrane organization of MotB is difficult to reconcile with a role as a proton conductor.     

高校共青团组织服务大学生就业与创业的思考

大学生就业是当前社会的热点话题,国家、社会和高等院校都在采取积极的措施帮助大学生就业。本文对高校共青团组织如何为大学生就业和创业提供服务进行了有益的探索,分别从帮助大学生树立正确的择业观,解决求职心理问题,全面提升就业竞争力,提供就业信息和搭建就业平台等几方面进行了阐述。     

Regulation of the polarity protein Par6 by TGFbeta receptors controls epithelial cell plasticity

The transition of cells from an epithelial to a mesenchymal phenotype is a critical event during morphogenesis in multicellular organisms and underlies the pathology of many diseases, including the invasive phenotype associated with metastatic carcinomas. Transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta) is a key regulator of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). However, the molecular mechanisms that control the dissolution of tight junctions, an early event in EMT, remain elusive. We demonstrate that Par6, a regulator of epithelial cell polarity and tight-junction assembly, interacts with TGFbeta receptors and is a substrate of the type II receptor, TbetaRII. Phosphorylation of Par6 is required for TGFbeta-dependent EMT in mammary gland epithelial cells and controls the interaction of Par6 with the E3 ubiquitin ligase Smurf1. Smurf1, in turn, targets the guanosine triphosphatase RhoA for degradation, thereby leading to a loss of tight junctions. These studies define how an extracellular cue signals to the polarity machinery to control epithelial cell morphology.     

Tubulin polyglutamylase enzymes are members of the TTL domain protein family

Polyglutamylation of tubulin has been implicated in several functions of microtubules, but the identification of the responsible enzyme(s) has been challenging. We found that the neuronal tubulin polyglutamylase is a protein complex containing a tubulin tyrosine ligase-like (TTLL) protein, TTLL1. TTLL1 is a member of a large family of proteins with a TTL homology domain, whose members could catalyze ligations of diverse amino acids to tubulins or other substrates. In the model protist Tetrahymena thermophila, two conserved types of polyglutamylases were characterized that differ in substrate preference and subcellular localization.     

串珠镰刀菌粗毒素对玉米根系细胞膜的影响

为了明确串珠镰刀菌毒素对玉米根系的致病机制,采用串珠镰刀菌粗毒素处理抗、感品种玉米幼苗根系,测定根系的细胞膜透性、丙二醛和可溶性糖含量,结果表明:抗病品种玉米对毒素的耐受能力强,细胞膜透性、丙二醛含量低于感病品种,而可溶性糖含量高于感病品种。抗病品种3个指标之间的相关性较高,而感病品种的3个指标相关性较低。表明抗、感品种玉米对串珠镰刀菌毒素的耐受能力不同。     

鼻咽癌细胞株CNE1转染EB病毒潜伏膜蛋白1(LMP1)后对放射敏感性的影响

目的：研究EB病参LMP1对鼻咽癌高分化细胞株CNE1放射敏感性的影响。方法：用电转染技术将带有EB病毒LMP1基因的真核表达质粒导入鼻咽癌高分化细胞株CNEl，用免疫组化法及Western blot检测LMPl的表达；LMP1对CNEl细胞放射敏感性的影响采用^60钴治疗仪照射后集落形成实验进行观察。结果：CNE1细胞抹转染LMP1基因后LMPl蛋白呈阳性表达，对照放射敏感性比未转染株的细胞存活事低(P＜0．01)。结论：LMPl能增加鼻咽癌细胞的放射敏感性，这种作用可能与LMP1的促细胞转化，抑分化有关。