The 16MΔvjbR as an ideal live attenuated vaccine candidate for differentiation between Brucella vaccination and infection

Brucellosis brings great economic burdens for developing countries. Live attenuated vaccines are the most efficient means for prevention and control of animal Brucellosis. However, the difficulties of differentiating of infection from vaccine immunization, which is essential for eradication programs, limit their applications. Therefore, the development of a vaccine that could differentiate infection from immunization will overcome the limitations and get extensive application. VjbR is a quorum sensing regulator involving in Brucella's intracellular survival. The vjbR∷Tn5 mutants have been proven effective against wild type strain challenge, implying its possibility of use in vaccine candidate development. To further evaluate this candidate gene, in the present study, the antigenicity of purified recombinant VjbR protein was analyzed. Antibodies to Brucella melitensis VjbR could be detected in sera from patients and animals with brucellosis but not in control ones, implying the potential use of this protein as a diagnostic antigen. Then a vjbR mutant of B. melitensis 16M was constructed by replacing the vjbR with kanamycin gene. The mutant showed reduced survival in macrophage and mice. Vaccination of BALB/c mice with 16MΔvjbR conferred significant protective immunity against B. melitensis strain 16M challenges, being equivalent to which induced by the license vaccine Rev.1. The vjbR deletion mutant elicited an anti-Brucella-specific immunoglobulin G response and induced the secretion of gamma interferon and interleukin-10. The most importance is that, the use of vjbR mutants as vaccines in association with diagnostic tests based on the VjbR antigen would allow the serological differentiation between infected and vaccinated animals. These results suggest that 16MΔvjbR is an ideal live attenuated vaccine candidate against B. melitensis and deserves further evaluation for vaccine development.     

Novel human H7N9 influenza virus in China

Outbreaks of H7N9 avian influenza in humans in 5 provinces and 2 municipalities of China have reawakened concern that avian influenza viruses may again cross species barriers to infect the human population and thereby initiate a new influenza pandemic. Evolutionary analysis shows that human H7N9 influenza viruses originated from the H9N2, H7N3 and H11N9 avian viruses, and that it is as a novel reassortment influenza virus. This article reviews current knowledge on 11 subtypes of influenza A virus from human which can cause human infections.     

Bactrian camel (Camelus bactrianus) integrins αvβ3 and αvβ6 as FMDV receptors: Molecular cloning, sequence analysis and comparison with other species

Integrins are heterodimeric adhesion receptors that participate in a variety of cell–cell and cell–extracellular matrix protein interactions. Many integrins recognize RGD sequences displayed on extracellular matrix proteins and the exposed loops of viral capsid proteins. Four members of the αv integrin family of cellular receptors, αvβ3, αvβ6, αvβ1 and αvβ8, have been identified as receptors for foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) in vitro, and integrins are believed to be the receptors used to target epithelial cells in the infected animals. To analyse the roles of the αv integrins from a susceptible species as viral receptors, we have cloned Bactrian camel αv, β3 and β6 integrin cDNAs and compared them to those of other species. The coding sequences for Bactrian camel integrin αv, β3 and β6 were found to be 3165, 2289 and 2367 nucleotides in length, encoding 1054, 762 and 788 amino acids, respectively. The Bactrian camel αv, β3 and β6 subunits share many structural features with homologues of other species, including the ligand binding domain and cysteine-rich region. Phylogenetic trees and similarity analyses showed the close relationships of integrin genes from Bactrian camels, pigs and cattle, which are each susceptible to FMDV infection, that were distinct from the orders Rodentia, Primates, Perissodactyla, Carnivora, Galliformes and Xenopus. We postulate that host tropism of FMDV may in part be related to the divergence in integrin subunits among different species.     

几种禾草的开花习性

研究１１份禾草种质料的开花习性表明：稗草，长叶雀稗及草芦的小花开放顺序，通常由顶部向基部开放，而庐山草芦及鸭茅则表现为由中上部位向上，下两端开放。单个花序开花持续时间在７－３２天。除草芦外，其余各属饲草的不同草种间小花开部特点相似。３种稗草有部分不花闭颖返粉结实。庐山草芦一日开花高峰在下午１４－１５时，其余均在上午，多数在８－１０时。     

古巴非洲猪瘟根除的经验与借鉴

1971年非洲猪瘟首次传入古巴并于当年根除,1980年再次传入并在一年内又被根除。古巴能快速根除非洲猪瘟,主要与防控专业委员会的及时成立,协作机制的快速建立;全面扑杀措施的快速实施,健康猪产品的合理利用;民间团队的积极参与以及政府财政的大力支持密切相关。古巴的根除经验,可为我国非洲猪瘟的防控提供参考。     

昆虫黑化反应的分子机制研究进展

目的克氏原螯虾(Procambarus clarkii)属于节肢动物门甲壳纲十足目,也称淡水小龙虾。多巴脱羧酶(dopa decarboxylase)作为小龙虾先天免疫应答中的一种关键酶,在抵御外来病原体的侵害上起到了重要作用。本研究以克氏原螯虾为材料,克隆了Pc-ddc cDNA序列并对其进行生物信息学及组织mRNA表达分析。方法通过分子生物学技术构建大肠杆菌表达载体,并进行生物信息学分析,同时应用qRT-PCR技术分析其mRNA组织表达分布。结果生物信息学分析表明：获得了开放阅读框全长为1 425 bp的Pc-ddc基因的cDNA序列,编码474个氨基酸残基,多肽的理论分子量为52.99 ku,蛋白分子式为C₂₃₈₄H₃₆₈₉N₆₄₇O₆₇₄S₂₅,等电点为5.98,为弱酸性蛋白且N-末端无信号肽。亚细胞定位表明：Pc-DDC蛋白在线粒体中最多;组织表达分析表明：Pc-ddc mRNA在检测的6个组织中差异表达,其中,淋巴组织表达量最高。结论本研究为克氏原螯虾等无脊椎动物先天免疫系统的深入探索提供了理论支撑。     

Influence of prolonged arable cropping on lignin compounds in sandy soils of the South African Highveld

The preservation of plant residues is important for sustainable arable cropping. Lignin is a marker for plant residues in soils. We have investigated influences of the length of cultivation on the dynamics of lignin. Composite samples were taken from the top 20 cm of soils that have been cropped for periods varying from 0 to 98 years in each of three different agro‐ecosystems in the Free State Province of South Africa. Lignin‐derived phenols were determined in the <2 µm (clay), 2–20 µm (silt), 20–250 µm (fine sand) and 250– 2000 µm (coarse sand) size separates. With increasing length of cultivation, the concentration of such phenols decreased to 36% of that in the grassland. The lignin contents as proportions of the total carbon did not change during cultivation, suggesting that there was no selective enrichment of lignin moieties as C was lost as a result of cultivation. The loss rate constants of lignin concentrations in particle‐size fractions increased in the order clay (0.17 year^?1) ≤ silt (0.18 year^?1) < fine sand (0.20 year^?1) < coarse sand (0.22 year^?1). Increasing ratios of phenolic acids to aldehydes in bulk soil, silt and fine sand fractions with increasing length of cultivation indicated that side chains were being oxidized. The ratios in the silt fraction, however, decreased after 10–20 years. We attribute this to a loss of lignin together with silt by wind erosion, resulting in a rejuvenation of lignin compounds in the remaining silt‐sized pools of C.     

Effects of the dietary protein to energy ratio on growth,feed utilization and body composition in Macrobrachium nipponense

Oriental river prawn (Macrobrachium nipponense) has been widely cultured in Asian countries. However, its nutritional studies are very limited. In the present 8‐week study, we investigated the effects of dietary protein to energy ratio (P/E ratio) on the growth, feed utilization and body composition in juvenile M. nipponense (initial weight 0.302 ±0.03 g). Two‐factor experiment was designed and nine semi‐purified diets were formulated to contain three lipid levels (20, 80 and 140 g kg^?1) and three protein levels (330, 380 and 430 g kg^?1), producing P/E ratios from 16.5 to 23.4 mg KJ^?1 protein. The results indicated that the growth, survival rate and protein efficiency were dose dependently improved by the increased dietary lipid, but not dietary protein content. Increased dietary lipid content and/or protein content increased lipid accumulation in whole body, hepatopancreas and muscle, but did not change the feed intake and hepatopancreas weight. In conclusion, our present study indicated that M. nipponense is a species with relatively high‐energy requirement. It could utilize dietary lipid content up to 140 g kg^?1, while the dietary protein with more than 330 g kg^?1 would not promote growth and protein efficiency. Taken together, 330 g kg^?1 dietary protein and 140 g kg^?1 dietary lipid level with P/E ratio 16.49 could be optimum for M. nipponense.     

覆盖对烟田土壤酶活性及烤烟叶片荧光特性的影响

通过对烤烟大田3种不同覆盖方式的覆盖效应比较表明:覆盖明显增强了土壤过氧化氢酶和蔗糖酶活性,对脲酶活性有一定抑制作用;在烤烟生长前期,液膜覆盖处理土壤过氧化氢酶活性较对照和地膜覆盖处理分别平均提高5.72%、23.19%,且覆盖处理间差异达0.05显著水平;覆盖处理的蔗糖酶较对照平均提高0.8%,但3个处理间差异均不显...     

三北地区大扁杏栽培管理实用技术

大扁杏是我国三北地区特有的经济树种之一。它适应性强,经济价值高。一般10～15年生杏平均收入1.5万元/(ｈ·ａ)。杏仁除含有多种营养成分外,还含有抗癌物质维生素Ｂ17,广泛应用于食品、医药等工业,是外贸出口产品,深受外商欢迎。栽植大扁杏是三北地区人民脱贫致富的一个?..