Sirt5 is a NAD-dependent protein lysine demalonylase and desuccinylase

Silent information regulator 2 (Sir2) proteins (sirtuins) are nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-dependent deacetylases that regulate important biological processes. Mammals have seven sirtuins, Sirt1 to Sirt7. Four of them (Sirt4 to Sirt7) have no detectable or very weak deacetylase activity. We found that Sirt5 is an efficient protein lysine desuccinylase and demalonylase in vitro. The preference for succinyl and malonyl groups was explained by the presence of an arginine residue (Arg(105)) and tyrosine residue (Tyr(102)) in the acyl pocket of Sirt5. Several mammalian proteins were identified with mass spectrometry to have succinyl or malonyl lysine modifications. Deletion of Sirt5 in mice appeared to increase the level of succinylation on carbamoyl phosphate synthase 1, which is a known target of Sirt5. Thus, protein lysine succinylation may represent a posttranslational modification that can be reversed by Sirt5 in vivo.     

Disseminated transmissible venereal tumor in a dog.

Transmissible venereal tumor (TVT) is a well-documented transplantable tumor in dogs, with no breed or sex predilection and a low metastatic rate. In this report, a 2-year-old intact female Mastiff that had numerous, rapidly growing masses throughout the subcutis mainly at the dorsal body plane, the caudal half of the ventral abdomen, and around the vulva was euthanized due to poor prognosis. Neoplastic nodules similar to those seen in the subcutis were also noted in the lung, anterior mediastinum, liver, spleen, kidney, and superficial and deep lymph nodes in both abdominal and thoracic cavities. The neoplastic nodules from the subcutis as well as metastatic foci revealed similar cytologic and histologic features, which were consistent with canine TVT. By immunohistochemical staining, the neoplastic cells were positive for lysozyme and vimentin but were negative for cytokeratin, desmin, CD3, and CD79a. The diagnosis of the TVT was further supported by the identification and analysis of long interspersed nuclear elements (LINE) from paraffin-embedded tumor tissue. This case is a rare example of TVT with multiorgan metastasis. In this case, the polymerase chain reaction technique was useful in differential diagnosis of canine round cell tumors because this technique can be applied in retrospective as well as future study.     

Molecular cloning and expression analysis of pig CD81

CD81, also known as TAPA-1 (target of antiproliferative antibody 1), is a member of the tetraspanin family of proteins and a component of the B cell co-receptor complex. Several studies have shown that CD81 plays significant roles in a variety of immune responses, including activation of B cells and T cells. In this study, we cloned pig Cd81 cDNA using RT-PCR coupled with rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE)-PCR and determined the complete cDNA sequence of pig Cd81. Pig Cd81 cDNA contains an open reading frame (711 bp) encoding 236 amino acids. The identity of pig CD81 with those of human, cattle, rat, and mouse are 90.30%, 92.26%, 86.22%, and 86.22%, respectively. Alignment of the CD81 amino acid sequence with those of mammalian species showed that the large extracellular loop (LEL) is the most divergent, whereas other domains are largely conserved. Pig Cd81 mRNA was detected by RT-PCR in a broad range of tissues, including lymphoid tissues as well as nonlymphoid tissues, indicated variety of cellular functions of CD81 in most pig tissues. Flow cytometry analyses demonstrated that human CD81 antibody recognizes a pig CD81 on the cell surface. Further, immunohistochemistry analysis using human CD81 antibody on pig spleen was revealed that CD81 expression is widely diffused in spleen tissue. Future study will be focused on defining the functional role of CD81 during the course of pig infectious diseases.     

玉米精播机漏播补偿系统设计

目前玉米免耕播种机的播种质量仍低于常规播种。本文讨论了微机控制的排种监测及漏播补偿装置，通过机电结合手段解决漏播问题。台架试验表明本装置能够准确发现漏播，并通过采取的措施实现及时补种，补种成功率可达90％以上。     

Comparison of antibody titers in rabbits following immunization with inactivated influenza virus via subarachnoidal or subcutaneous route

Rabbits were immunized with inactivated influenza virus via the subarachnoidal (SA) or subcutaneous (SC) route, and the antibody titers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum were assayed. There were no nervous signs or morphological lesions related to SA immunization. In the SC group, the antibody titer was elevated in serum, but not elevated in CSF. In the SA group, the antibody titer was significantly elevated in serum and even in CSF, and their antibody titers were much greater than in the SC group. The present results suggest that intrathecal immunization is more effective than SC immunization at inducing a protective immune response against the transneural spread of viruses.     

Performance improvement of nonformaldehyde wrinkle resistant finished cotton fabrics treated with dialdehydes

Additives, such as sodium perborate and borax, were examined in dialdehyde wrinkle resistant finishing of cotton. Results indicated that the whiteness index (WI) of cotton treated with dialdehyde and additive showed about 90% of WI of the untreated cotton but with decrease in wrinkle recovery angle (WRA) due to inhibition effect of these additives. Effect of additive on the WRA reduction was more prominent with glutaraldehyde than with glyoxal. Reduction in WRA of cotton treated with both dialdehydes and boron compound was minimized by simultaneous addition of formic acid in the bath. Addition of formic acid was also generally beneficial in maintaining WI retentions after 8 months storage. Furthermore, boron compounds were also effective in improving retentions of mechanical properties. By FTIR analysis the residual aldehyde group was detected on the dialdehyde-finished cotton, whereas no peak was shown by addition of boron compounds. This suggested that the residual aldehyde group was a main cause of fabric yellowing on the dialdehyde-finished cotton. Dialdehyde with boron compound, therefore, can be used to replace a conventional formaldehyde-containing wrinkle resistant finishing of cotton.     

Pterocarpan profiles for soybean leaves at different growth stages and investigation of their glycosidase inhibitions

Soybean leaves are eaten as seasonal edible greens in Korea. Analysis of the ethyl acetate extract of these leaves showed that it exhibited potent and selective neuraminidase inhibition, which began at the R3 stage and peaked at R7. Ten pterocarpans, including the new 6a-hydroxypterocarpan 10, were isolated from soybean leaves and their inhibition activities tested against a range of glycosidases. The relationship between structure and enzyme inhibition was investigated: 6a-hydroxypterocarpans exhibited much higher inhibition against neuraminidase (IC(50) = 2.4-89.4 μM) than α-glucosidase (IC(50) = 90.4-?>100 μM). Glyceollin VII (7) displayed 40-fold greater activity (IC(50) = 2.4 μM) against neuraminidase than α-glucosidase (IC(50) = 90.4 μM). On the other hand, coumestanes (1-3) were good α-glucosidase inhibitors (IC(50) = 6.0-42.6 μM). In kinetic analysis, the most potent neuraminidase inhibitors (5-10) were noncompetitive. HPLC analysis indicated that most pterocarpan synthesis began from the R3 stage, and a rapid change of pterocarpan concentrations was observed between the R4 and R7 stages.     

Changes in orexin-A and neuropeptide y expression in the hypothalamus of obese and lean Zucker Diabetic Fatty rats

This study was carried out to investigate the changes of orexin-A (OXA) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) expression in the hypothalamus of the obese and lean Zucker Diabetic Fatty (ZDF) rats which have a missense mutation in the leptin receptor gene. The mean body weights (MBW) between the obese and lean ZDF rats were significantly different at 28 and 70 postnatal days. However, at 14 postnatal day, there was no significant difference in the MBW between the obese and lean ZDF rats in both male and female. The OXA immunoreactivities were not significantly different between the obese and lean ZDF rats in both sexes at 14, 28, and 70 postnatal days, respectively. The NPY immunoreactivity was higher in the obese than in the lean ZDF rats in both male and female at 28 and 70 postnatal days, whereas there was no significant difference between the obese and lean ZDF rats at 14 postnatal day. These results indicate that both OXA and NPY might halt their roles for food intake in the obese phenotype of the male and female ZDF rats in the preweaning period of 14 postnatal day, whereas NPY might play a main role in the obesity of these rats in the weaning period of 28 and 70 postnatal days.