Prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis using linked DNA probes

This paper presents data collected in Europe on 107 prenatal diagnoses of cystic fibrosis (CF) using linked DNA markers. To date, 38 children have been born without CF, as predicted, demonstrating the present rapid move from research to clinical genetic service.     

Archaeological Evidence of Validity of Fish Populations on Unexploited Reefs as Proxy Targets for Modern Populations

Reef‐fish management and conservation is hindered by a lack of information on fish populations prior to large‐scale contemporary human impacts. As a result, relatively pristine sites are often used as conservation baselines for populations near sites affected by humans. This space‐for‐time approach can only be validated by sampling assemblages through time. We used archaeological remains to evaluate whether the remote, uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) might provide a reasonable proxy for a lightly exploited baseline in the Main Hawaiian Islands (MHI). We used molecular and morphological techniques to describe the taxonomic and size composition of the scarine parrotfish catches present in 2 archaeological assemblages from the MHI, compared metrics of these catches with modern estimates of reproductive parameters to evaluate whether catches represented by the archaeological material were consistent with sustainable fishing, and evaluated overlap between size structures represented by the archaeological material and modern survey data from the MHI and the NWHI to assess whether a space‐for‐time substitution is reasonable. The parrotfish catches represented by archaeological remains were consistent with sustainable fishing because they were dominated by large, mature individuals whose average size remained stable from prehistoric (AD approximately 1400–1700) through historic (AD 1700–1960) periods. The ancient catches were unlike populations in the MHI today. Overlap between the size structure of ancient MHI catches and modern survey data from the NWHI or the MHI was an order of magnitude greater for the NWHI comparison, a result that supports the validity of using the NWHI parrotfish data as a proxy for the MHI before accelerated, heavy human impacts in modern times. Evidencia Arqueológica de la Validez de Poblaciones de Peces en Arrecifes Sin Explotar como Objetivos de Apoderamiento para Poblaciones Actuales     

Assessing stress response of Stylophora pistillata towards oil and phosphate pollution in the Gulf of Aqaba,using molecular and biochemical markers

Crude oil (from oil terminal) and raw phosphate (from phosphate port) pollution are responsible for the lowered health conditions of coral reefs at their vicinity in the Jordanian coast of the Gulf of Aqaba. Both in situ incubations and ex situ laboratory exposure experiments were used to study the effects of those pollutants on corals, by using molecular and biochemical biomarkers in the coral Stylophora pistillata. For ex situ part of the experiment, crude oil and raw phosphate were added to a final concentration of 500?ppm for both pollutants. The DNA damage was assessed by Comet assay, while biochemical stress markers were reassessed by lipid peroxidation (LPO) test. Although the corals looked healthy from outside, the use of stress biomarkers indicated that they are under high pressure at the cellular level. The corals incubated with oil and phosphate had more DNA damage and LPO in comparison with the control samples. The results obtained suggest that the use of stress biomarkers can be used as important prognostic tools for examining the sub-lethal stress on corals before their death.     

Urinary 8-oxo-7, 8-dihydro-2′-deoxyguanosine concentrations after frying of bacon,a pilot study

Cooking fumes contain compounds that may give rise to oxidative stress and mutations when inhaled. The aim of this study was to evaluate if cooking fumes from frying of bacon induce oxidative stress by measurement of urinary 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2 deoxyguanosine, a marker of oxidatively damaged DNA. Three non-smoking women fried bacon for 3 h. Urine samples were taken as early morning void at the same time on four days; the morning before frying, the morning after first frying, the morning after three days of frying and one week after first urine sample. 8-Oxo-7,8-dihydro-2 deoxyguanosine, 1-hydroxypyrene and 2-hydroxyphenanthrene, metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, were measured by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). 8-Oxo-7,8-dihydro-2 deoxyguanosine correlated weakly with concentrations of 1-hydroxypyrene (r = 0.31, p = 0.042), but it did not correlate with 2-hydroxyphenanthrene (r = ?0.074; p = 0.64). Average urinary 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2 deoxyguanosine concentrations increased from the day before frying (16.3 ± 4.2 nmol/L) to the third day of frying (26.2 ± 10.2 nmol/L), although not statistically significantly. Our pilot study shows that frying of bacon may result in increased oxidative stress which further emphasises the possible carcinogenic potential of cooking fumes.     

Level of environmental threat posed by horticultural trade in Cactaceae

Ornamental horticulture has been identified as an important threat to plant biodiversity and is a major pathway for plant invasions worldwide. In this context, the family Cactaceae is particularly challenging because it is considered the fifth most threatened large taxonomic group in the world; several species are among the most widespread and damaging invasive species; and Cactaceae is one of the most popular horticultural plant groups. Based on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna and the 11 largest online auction sites selling cacti, we documented the international cactus trade. To provide an in‐depth look at the dynamics of the industry, we surveyed the businesses involved in the cactus trade in South Africa (a hotspot of cactus trade and invasions). We purchased seeds of every available species and used DNA barcoding to identify species to the genus level. Although <20% of this trade involved threatened species and <3% involved known invasive species, many species were identified by a common name. However, only 0.02% of the globally traded cacti were collected from wild populations. Despite a large commercial network, all South African imports (of which 15% and 1.5% were of species listed as threatened and invasive, respectively) came from the same source. With DNA barcoding, we identified 24% of the species to genus level. Based on our results, we believe that if trade restrictions are placed on the small proportion of cacti that are invasive and there is no major increase in harvesting of native populations, then the commercial trade in cactus poses a negligible environmental threat. However, there are currently no effective methods for easily identifying which cacti are traded, and both the illicit harvesting of cacti from the wild and the informal trade in invasive taxa pose on‐going conservation challenges.     

重金属Cr(Ⅵ)、Pb及Cu胁迫对双齿围沙蚕体腔细胞的DNA损伤

为探讨重金属Cr(Ⅵ)、Pb以及Cu对沙蚕体腔细胞DNA的毒性效应,以双齿围沙蚕为受试动物,重金属按不同剂量水平,Cr(Ⅵ):10、100和200 mg· L-1,Pb:5、50和100 mg·L-1,Cu:1、10和20 mg· L-1,分别胁迫沙蚕24 h,以不加任何重金属离子的海水为对照,采用单细胞凝胶电泳技术,检测其体腔细胞DNA损伤程度.结果表明,与空白对照组相比,3种重金属离子的各浓度组都能引起沙蚕体腔细胞DNA损伤,且3种重金属胁迫浓度与细胞DNA损伤程度之间存在显著的剂量-效应关系.双齿围沙蚕可以作为单细胞凝胶电泳的实验材料用于重金属所致环境污染的生物监测指示生物.     

Shewanella oneidensis MR-1对硫化汞的生物利用性研究

在实验室模拟条件下,研究了铁还原菌奥奈达希瓦式菌Shewanella oneidensis MR-1对固态硫化汞的生物溶解、生物甲基化作用及其影响因素.结果表明,铁还原菌S.oneidensis MR-1在含硫培养基中生长良好,低浓度硫素能够促进其生长,高浓度时细菌生长则受到抑制,这种抑制主要表现在菌株生长曲线迟缓期的延长;铁还原菌S.oneidensis MR-1能够利用固态硫化汞,促进其溶解并迅速进行汞甲基化;在S.oneidensis MR-1的耐硫化物范围内,菌株对硫化汞的生物溶解作用随着硫化钠浓度的增大而增强,但生物甲基化作用只在低浓度硫化钠时受到促进,硫化钠浓度过高时则会受到抑制;此外,弱酸性环境比酸性及中碱性的环境更有利于S.oneidensis MR-1对硫化汞的生物溶解及甲基化.     

两相一体式污泥浓缩消化(TISTD)反应器微生物多样性研究

针对课题组开发的两相一体式污泥浓缩消化反应器(TISTD),采用16S rDNA、PCR-TGGE等分子生物学技术,对反应器在不同阶段稳态下的内、外反应室中微生物的多样性和种群结构进行了研究.结果表明:TISTD反应器内外反应室中微生物群落均呈现高度的多样性分布,优势菌群明显,群落结构差异性很大,且外反应室较内反应室具有更多的微生物种群数量,外室是水解酸化的场所,污泥在外室经过微生物的水解酸化后进入内室,内室是严格厌氧的产甲烷场所;从反应器运行的不同时期来看,反应器中微生物优势种群呈现一定的差异,随着反应器负荷的改变,微生物的群落结构和种群数量也呈现出明显的演替过程,优势种群的功能地位处在动态变化中.微生物种群之间通过协同和竞争作用,形成了特定生态位的群落结构.研究结果解释了TISTD反应器同时浓缩和消化的工作机理,并为其推广、应用及优化调控提供了理论基础.     

铜胁迫对不同基因型谷子幼苗基因组DNA多态性的影响

采用室内盆栽土培法,以4种基因型谷子(D2-8、安06、黄米、朝谷)为供试材料,研究了不同浓度Cu2+胁迫对谷子幼苗体内可溶性糖、脯氨酸、丙二醛(MDA)含量和基因组DNA多态性的影响.结果表明,经50~400 mg·kg-1Cu2+处理30 d后,4种谷子幼苗体内可溶性糖含量与对照相比呈现先上升后下降的趋势,在50 mg·kg-1时达到最大值.当浓度为200mg·kg-1以上时,4种谷子的可溶性糖含量的平均降幅为对照的32.44%~56.5%.脯氨酸则表现为低含量(≤50 mg·kg-1)的促进和高含量(≥100 mg·kg-1)的抑制效应,MDA含量均有增加且与对照差异显著(P<0.05).Cu2+胁迫下不同基因型谷子幼苗基因组DNA的RAPD图谱发生明显变化,表现为单条或多条RAPD谱带的增加和缺失或者荧光强度的改变,细胞中基因组模板DNA的稳定性下降,DNA多态性变化与Cu2+浓度之间存在剂量-效应关系.不同基因型谷子对Cu2+胁迫的生理和遗传损伤响应存在差异.利用RAPD技术获得的DNA多态性变化可作为检测Cu2+遗传毒性效应的生物标记物.     

秸秆沼气干发酵基质中微生物DNA提取方法筛选

比较了4种处理方法对从秸秆沼气干发酵基质中提取微生物总DNA纯度和产量的影响,以及添加PVP和使用试剂盒对DNA粗提液的纯化效果,试图寻找一种适用于从秸秆沼气干发酵基质中提取微生物总DNA的有效方法。结果表明:采用冻融处理和酶处理相结合的方法得到DNA提取液的A260/A230和A260/A280相对较高,与其它3种方法有显著性差异(P≤0.05);提取液中添加PVP对去除DNA粗提液中的腐殖酸有一定效果,但添加量1%⁶%的效果差异不显著;经细菌DNA纯化试剂盒纯化后A260/A230和A260/A280分别达到(1.223±0.156)和(1.737±0.120)。对吸附了磷酸盐的氢氧化钽进行解吸,当pH=12时解吸率为52.45%。研究结果表明,氢氧化钽能够有效地去除水溶液中磷酸盐的吸附剂。