Use of serum amyloid A in equine medicine and surgery

Serum amyloid A (SAA) has become an indispensable part of the management of equine patients in general practice and specialized hospital settings. Although several proteins possess acute phase properties in horses, the usefulness of SAA exceeds that of other acute phase proteins. This is due to the highly desirable kinetics of the equine SAA response. SAA concentrations exhibit a rapid and pronounced increase in response to inflammation and a rapid decline after the resolution of inflammation. This facilitates the detection of inflammatory disease and real-time monitoring of inflammatory activity. SAA may be used in all stages of patient management: (1) before diagnosis (to rule in/rule out inflammatory disease), (2) at the time of diagnosis (to assess the severity of inflammation and assist in prognostication), and (3) after diagnosis (to monitor changes in inflammatory activity in response to therapy, with relapse of disease, or with infectious/inflammatory complications). By assessing other acute phase reactants in addition to SAA, clinicians can succinctly stage inflammation. White blood cell counts and serum iron concentration change within hours of an inflammatory insult, SAA within a day, and fibrinogen within 2–3 days; the interrelationship of these markers thus indicates the duration and activity of the inflammatory condition. Much research on the equine SAA response and clinical use has been conducted in the last decade. This is the prerequisite for the evidence-based use of this analyte. However, still today, most published studies involve a fairly low number of horses. To obtain solid evidence for use of SAA, future studies should be designed with larger sample sizes.     

影响农杆菌介导甜瓜子叶遗传转化的因素

以甜瓜子叶作为根癌农杆菌介导转化的受体,通过GUS基因瞬时表达率的分析,研究此转化体系的最佳实验参数.实验结果表明,预培养时间、预培养后对外植体进行处理、感染时间、共培养时间、农杆菌工程菌的浓度等对转化效率都有一定的影响,但是根癌农杆菌诱导物AS并不能大幅度提高转化效果.对外植体进行重新处理,预培养2 d,用OD560为0.3的农杆菌工程菌感染15～25 min,共培养3～4 d的理想条件下,GUS瞬时表达率可达85%.     

数字PCR技术在动物疫病检测中的应用

为了支持动物疫病流行地区的控制及消除计划,以及在动物疫病非流行地区进行有效筛查,必须使用更加准确灵敏的诊断手段。数字PCR可实现绝对定量及痕量核酸的检测,与传统检测方法相比具有不依赖参考物或标准品、对抑制剂具有较高耐受性、灵敏度和精准度更高的优点。数字PCR作为一种定量分析的核酸检测新方法,在动物疫病检测中得到了应用,围绕数字PCR技术的原理、应用、存在的问题及发展趋势等进行综述及分析,为数字PCR在动物疫病检测中的进一步应用提供参考。     

应用彗星试验研究产毒微囊藻喂食暴露对铜锈环棱螺肝细胞DNA的损伤

把铜锈环棱螺（Bellamya aeruginosa）暴露于3组不同成分的微藻悬浮液中[蓝藻组：只投喂产毒铜绿微囊藻（Microcystis aeruginosa）;混合藻组：50%四尾柵藻（Scenedesmus quadricanda）＋50%产毒铜绿微囊藻;对照组：只投喂四尾柵藻],用酶联免疫检测法（Enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay,ELISA）检测藻液和螺肝组织中的藻毒素浓度。结果表明,藻液中包括藻相和水相的总微囊藻毒素（MCs）浓度分别为：蓝藻组（36.34±4.12）μg·L-1;混合藻组（18.69±2.12）μg·L-1;对照组未检出。在喂食暴露的前6h内,混合藻组和蓝藻组螺肝组织中微囊藻毒素含量持续增长,而后出现下降趋势;第12h更换藻液并将微藻浓度调整至初始值后,肝组织中MCs含量又迅速回升。同期螺肝细胞DNA损伤指标彗星尾长（TL）、彗星尾距（TM）和彗星尾部DNA百分含量（Tail DNA%）也随螺肝组织中MCs含量发生相应变化,各项DNA损伤指标均在产毒微囊藻喂食暴露6h时达到最大值,之后,各项指标值有所回落,但第12h更换藻液后,DNA损伤再次加剧。整个实验期间（24h）,混合藻组和蓝藻组的DNA损伤指标均显著高于对照组,混合藻组均显著高于蓝藻组。说明铜锈环棱螺经产毒微囊藻喂食暴露后,其肝组织细胞的DNA受到损伤,且螺肝组织MCs积累越多,DNA损伤越严重。     

ELISA法对禽蛋中氯霉素残留量检测

试样中残留的氯霉素与氯霉素酶标记物共同竞争氯霉素抗体,形成有酶标记或无酶标记的抗原抗体复合物而被吸附于微孔底板。用酶标仪在波长450 nm处测定吸光度,根据吸光度得出样品中氯霉素的残留量。对禽蛋中氯霉素残留量进行测定,并对其加标回收率、再现性、重复性进行了分析研究,均能够达到国际氯霉素残留量的检测要求。     

水稻OsUAP2基因生物信息学分析及原核表达活性鉴定

UAGPase广泛存在于生物体,是糖代谢过程中一类重要酶。我们前期发现水稻Os UAP1具有单向催化UDPG分解代谢活性,Os UAP2与Os UAP1序列相似性极高。本研究对Os UAP2进行生物信息学分析,构建并表达重组蛋白,并鉴定其酶蛋白活性。结果表明,OsUAP2基因位于4号染色体,编码区序列长1482 bp,编码493个氨基酸;Os UAP2具有UDPGP保守结构域,无跨膜区域,N-端不含信号肽;二级结构分析显示,该蛋白含α-螺旋和无规则卷曲较多;同源性分析表明,Os UAP2与玉米UAGPase的亲缘关系最近。在16℃下经0.1 mmol/L IPTG诱导8 h,原核菌株BL21表达出分子量约55 kD可溶性重组蛋白。体外酶活性测定表明,Os UAP2能同时催化UDPG降解和合成,表现出双向可逆催化的特点。本研究结果为进一步深入研究OsUAP2基因的生物学功能提供了科学依据。     

Effect of ABA,arginine and sucrose on protein content of date palm somatic embryos

Abscisic acid (ABA), arginine and sucrose were evaluated for their effects on the morphology, germination rates and protein content of date palm somatic embryos (SE). Different concentrations of these supplements in the culture medium were used. The comparative study of SE length and thickness between treated and untreated SE revealed no differences, except for ABA (20 μM), which increased thickness. A decrease of water content (WC) in favor of an increase in dry weight (DW) was observed in all treated SE, especially with sucrose (90 g l⁻¹) and ABA (20 μM). Only ABA (20 and 4 μM) caused a proliferation rate of the cultures higher than those in the control. Although all the tested compounds increased protein content, ABA (20 μM) was more effective in protein enrichment than arginine and sucrose treatments. The SDS-PAGE protein profiles showed a significant difference between treated and untreated SE. A protein band of 22 kDa, identified as glutelin in a previous work, was accumulated after treatment with 20 μM ABA or 3 mM arginine. These findings may contribute to further understanding of the mechanisms involved in the accumulation of specific storage proteins in several plants.     

Changes of serum vascular endothelial growth factor levels in a rat model of acute myocardial infarction

AIM and METHODS: To study the changes of serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels in a rat model of acute myocardial infarction (MI) and its significance. Eighty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. MI was produced by left coronary arterial ligation in 80 animals, and eight rats undergoing thoracotomy but not coronary ligation served as controls (sham).Blood samples were drawn from the right atrium before (sham animals) and 1, 3, 6, 12, 24 hours and 2, 3, 5, 7, 14 days after MI(n=8, respectively). Serum VEGF concentrations were measured by a sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with a rabbit polyclonal antibody specific for VEGF. RESULTS: In 8 sham animals, the concentration of serum VEGF was (66.99±17.83) pg/mL. Six hours after MI, the level of serum VEGF significantly increased to (125.68±28.07)pg/mL (P＜0.01 vs sham control), and reached a peak (240.61±70.63 pg/mL, P＜0.01 vs sham control) at 24 hours after ligation and then decreased gradually over the remaining 2 weeks. But the level remained significantly elevated for 14 days (107.64±30.31 pg/mL, P＜0.01 vs sham control).CONCLUSION: Serum VEGF levels markedly and permanently increase in the rat model of acute MI may play an important role in the angiogenesis associated with MI