Mechanism of Deca-BDE-induced apoptosis in Neuro-2a cells: Role of death-receptor pathway and reactive oxygen species-mediated mitochondrial pathway

Decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) is a prevalent polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congener known to have neurotoxicity. Effects of BDE-209 on Neuro-2a cells were performed in the present study and the possible apoptotic pathway was discussed. Results indicated that BDE-209 induced Neuro-2a cell apoptosis, increased the protein expression of Fas and Fas-associated death domain-containing protein (FADD) and activated the caspase-8 and -3 activities in a concentration-dependent manner, inferring the death-receptor pathway was involved in the apoptotic process. Meanwhile, BDE-209 exposure increased the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio and decreased the cellular mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) which led to cytochrome C released to the cytoplasm. The intracellular caspase-9 was elevated simultaneously, which caused downstream caspase cascade and triggered cell apoptosis. Moreover, BDE-209 exposure increased cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in a concentration-dependent manner and the addition of N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC), known as ROS scavengers, obviously reduced the apoptotic rate and a positive relationship was observed between the degree of apoptosis blocking and the loss of MMP and ROS production. We thus concluded that BDE-209 induced Neuro-2a cell apoptosis via the combination of the death-receptor signaling pathway and the mitochondrial signaling pathway. The elevated ROS production was considered to magnify the intracellular apoptosis signal and played a crucial role in apoptosis of Neuro-2a cells induced by BDE-209.     

Trophoblast-like cells sorted from peripheral maternal blood using flow cytometry: A multiparametric study involving transmission electron microscopy and fetal dna amplification

Three monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against trophoblast (GB17, GB21, and GB25) and flow cytometry were used to sort trophoblast-like cells (TLCs) from peripheral blood of pregnant women. Sorted TLCs were processed for electron microscopy and fetal DNA amplification of the Y-specific sequences from mothers carrying male fetuses. At the ultra-structural level, most of the nucleated cells had the morphology of leucocytes, suggesting maternal contaminants, and we did not find the characteristic features of the free inter-villous trophoblast cells. Nevertheless, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis showed an amplification of Y-specific sequences in two out of three samples of sorted TLCs. These results suggest that besides the maternal leucocytes, sufficient trophoblast nucleated fetal cells can be obtained using cell enrichment by sorting. This sensitive method holds promise for non-invasive prenatal diagnosis of fetal sex and if sufficient Y(positive) nuclei are found, for the diagnosis of selected numerical chromosome abnormalities.     

微生物燃料电池-人工湿地耦合系统研究进展

微生物燃料电池-人工湿地耦合系统(CW-MFC)是一种新型污水处理工艺,该系统在增强污水处理效果的同时提高了产电性能,具有广阔的应用前景。综述了CW-MFC系统的研究现状,并将影响CW-MFC系统处理效果和产电效率的因素概括为组成要素、结构特点和运行参数3个方面。论文最后总结了系统当前存在的问题,并对未来的研究方向进行展望。     

利用百合(Lilium davidii)根尖细胞的微核细胞率作为环境监测指标的探讨

首次报道了利用百合根尖细胞微核细胞率作为环境监测指标的可行性和优越性。实验证明,百合根尖比蚕豆根尖细胞的微核细胞率更敏感。     

微生物固定化技术在污水生物脱氮中的应用

综述了微生物固定化技术在污水硝化、生物脱氮中的应用,包括固定化材料与固定化工艺;国内外研究与应用现状;以及在较大规模污水处理中的实际应用;对该项技术目前存在的问题及其解决途径、发展前景和趋势进行了评述。     

A LARGE ELECTRONIC WEIGHING LYSIMETER SYSTEM: DESIGN AND INSTALLATION1

ABSTRACT: To measure crop evapotranspiration, a large double tank, electronic weighting lysimeter system was designed and installed at the Shahid Bahonar University farm, Kerman, Iran. The system was installed in a 50 m² underground building. It includes two tanks of 3.00 m in diameter and 1.75 m deep. The weighing mechanism for each tank is a set of three compression strain gage load cells, which are fixed on 1.20 m height column above the floor. According to the specification of the load cells, the maximum possible weighing error may be about 0.01 percent of total mass, which is equivalent to 0.28 mm of water, but the measured error was equal to 1 kg mass, which is equivalent to 0.14 mm of water. The load cell data from each tank and the on‐site environmental data (temperature, humidity, and wind velocity and direction) are automatically recorded and saved in a personal computer hard disk for further use and analysis.     

Dynamics of Bacterial Abundance,Biomass, Activity,and Community Composition in the Oligotrophic Traunsee and the Traun River (Austria)

The holomictic Traunsee is the deepest and second largest lakein Austria. The special characteristic of this ecosystem isthe fact that local salt and soda industries presumably alterthe lake by the discharge of waste materials. Since thebeginning of the 20th century salt and soda works areannually releasing up to 50,000 tons of solid wastes and up to150,000 tons of chloride into Traunsee. To assess potentialeffects of these anthropogenic impacts on the bacterioplanktonthree sampling sites, influenced as well as not influenced bythe industrial discharge, were chosen for comparison andsampled monthly from November 1997 to October 1998. Bacterialabundance ranged between 0.4 to 3.0 × 10⁶ cells ml^-1 with decreasing numbers along the depth profile. Theproportion of actively respiring bacteria, i.e. INT [2-(4-iodophenyl)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-5-phenyltetrazolium chloride]reducing cells, never exceeded 10% of DAPI (4',6'-diamidino-2-phenylindole) stained cells. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was used to examine the seasonal and spatial distribution of dominant phylogenetic groups of thebacterioplankton. Up to 84% of bacteria detected with DAPIcould be detected via FISH applying the universal bacterialprobe EUB338. Percentages of alpha- and beta-Proteobacteriaand members of the Cytophaga-Flavobacterium cluster did notexceed 60% of DAPI-stained cells.Beta-Proteobacteriaappeared to be the most abundant group, not only in Traunsee butalso in two reference lakes, Attersee and Hallstättersee. No significant differences in any of the bacterial parameters couldbe detected between the three sampling sites and all measurementswere found in the range reported for oligotrophic lakes. The highdischarge of the Traun River, resulting in a lake water renewaltime of only one year, may diminish possible effects of industrial waste discharge in the pelagic zone.