地衣芽孢杆菌2709和 6816碱性蛋白酶基因在大肠杆菌中的克隆、表达及序列分析

用PCR方法从地衣芽孢杆菌 2 70 9和 6 816中扩增了碱性蛋白酶基因 (apr1和apr2 ) ,扩增的DNA片段插入到大肠杆菌载体 pET -2 8a中 ,构建成重组分泌型表达载体pAPR1、pAPR2 .pAPR1、pAPR2中碱性蛋白酶基因在大肠杆菌宿主JM 10 9(DE3)中得到表达 .SDS -PAGE分析显示融合表达产物的分子量均为 30 .5× 10 3 ,同核酸序列测定所推导的值相符 .表达产物分别占细胞总蛋白的 8.0 %和 7.5 % .2 70 9重组菌所得酶活为 12 10u/mL ,6 816重组菌所得酶活为 1175u/mL .研究发现 ,重组的碱性蛋白酶在进入大肠杆菌周质空间时可能存在前肽自动脱落的现象 .同时 ,对地衣芽孢杆菌 2 70 9碱性蛋白酶基因序列进行了测定和比较分析 ,发现与地衣芽孢杆菌 6 816碱性蛋白酶基因的同源性为 98% .图 5参 11     

深黄被孢霉苹果酸酶基因的克隆和表达

为了克隆与表达深黄被孢霉(Mortierella isabellina)M6-22苹果酸酶基因,根据深黄被孢霉M6-22转录组测序结果,以其c DNA为模板PCR扩增苹果酸酶基因编码序列,经测序验证分析后将扩增片段连接到表达载体pET-32a(+)中构建重组表达质粒pET32a MIME2并进一步转化入大肠杆菌BL21中进行诱导表达,经镍柱亲和纯化目的蛋白和酶活分析确定其为苹果酸酶.PCR扩增得到全长为1 815 bp的cDNA序列,序列分析表明该序列具有一个编码604个氨基酸的开放阅读框,预测编码蛋白分子量(Mr)为66.4×10~3.预测的氨基酸序列与已报道的苹果酸酶同样具有保守的2个二核苷酸结合结构域和1个二价金属离子结合结构域,因此是一个新的苹果酸酶基因序列,命名为MIME2,Gen Bank序列号为KU097323.将该序列转化大肠杆菌BL21中进行诱导表达,SDS-PAGE电泳检测到1条约67×10~3的蛋白条带表达,经镍柱纯化和酶活分析表明所纯化蛋白能催化苹果酸脱氢生成丙酮酸,同时生成NADPH,具有苹果酸酶的特性,其酶活大小为177.46 U/mg.以上结果证明所克隆的cDNA序列MIME2为1个新的苹果酸酶基因,基因编码蛋白具有苹果酸酶活性,可为深入研究苹果酸酶的结构和功能关系以及进一步应用奠定基础.     

碱性果胶酯裂解酶基因工程菌Pichia pastoris诱导表达条件初步优化

在摇瓶水平上,采用单因素试验方法,对影响碱性果胶酯基因工程菌Pichia pastoris表达的主要因素进行研究.确定初始甲醇浓度、甲醇补加量和氮源酵母氮基(YNB)浓度3个主要影响因素的初步优化结果为5%、O.8%和1.3%.在此基础上,利用响应面分析法进一步优化.经优化,表达条件为初始甲醇浓度4.35%、甲醇补加量0.75%1:2及YNB浓度1.31%,优化后碱性果胶酯裂解酶(PL)表达量达到40.6 U/mL,较初始培养条件提高约2.3倍.同时,利用SDS-PAGE电泳对优化前后基因工程菌表达情况进行分析,结果同样表明胞外FI标蛋白PL表达量有明显增加,进一步证实条件优化后对目标蛋白PL分泌表达具有十分明显的促进作用.     

乳酸片球菌L-乳酸脱氢酶基因的克隆及在大肠杆菌中的表达

与其它微生物相比,用大肠杆菌进行发酵生产乳酸有许多优势,但大肠杆菌没有L乳酸脱氢酶基因,不能利用糖发酵生产L乳酸.本文采用PCR技术,以乳酸片球菌(Pediococcusacidilactici)基因组DNA为模板,克隆得到L乳酸脱氢酶(Llactatedehydrogenase)基因,将该基因的ORF连接到表达质粒pET22b( ),获得重组质粒pETldhL.将pETldhL质粒转化大肠杆菌BL21株,实现了ldhL基因的表达;对含有ldhL基因的重组菌株进行表达研究,在30℃以IPTG诱导8h后,SDSPAGE分析可见明显特异性条带,酶活力达到6.49u/mL,是野生菌酶活力(2.82u/mL)的2.3倍.对重组表达的L乳酸脱氢酶生物学特性研究显示,它们的最适反应温度为27～30℃,最适反应pH为5.0～5.3.图5参15     

果胶寡糖生产菌的构建与筛选

生物酶解法是新兴益生元果胶寡糖(Pectin oligosaccharides,POS)生产的主要途径.通过构建黑曲霉来源的多聚半乳糖醛酸酶(Polygalacturonase,PGA)基因pga A表达载体p PIC9K-PGA,电转毕赤酵母GS115,筛选能够表达用于制备POS重组果胶酶的工程菌.利用SDS-PAGE检测诱导表达上清,TLC分析其水解产物成分,筛选得到一株特定降解果胶生成寡糖的酵母工程菌GS-12.该重组多聚半乳糖醛酸酶(Recombinant polygalacturonase,re PGA)相对分子量(Mr)为86×10~3,发酵液酶活水平24.8 U/m L;GS-12经30次传代后目的基因pga A仍能稳定遗传,水解产物成分未发生改变;酶促反应得出该酶最适温度50℃,最适p H 5.5,50℃保温5 h相对酶活保持50%以上.综上,所构建酵母工程菌GS-12遗传稳定性高,耐热性提升,作用果胶可得大分子量多糖产物,对POS的工业规模化生产具有重要价值.     

木聚糖酶基因xynB在不同大肠杆菌表达系统中的表达比较

从黑曲霉(Aspergillus niger)nl-1中克隆获得木聚糖酶基因xynB.该基因全长745 bp,含有67 bp内含子,与公布的黑曲霉xynB基因有较高的同源性.将PCR扩增的木聚糖酶成熟肽基因和含有信号肽的基因分别连接到表达载体肠杆菌Top10 F’、DH10B和两种BL21宿主中获得重组菌株.通过IPTG诱导,xynB基因在重组菌株中获得特异性表达.表达产物以胞内可溶性蛋白和不溶性包涵体形式存在.诱导4 h,重组菌株pTrc-99a-xynB[BL21 condon plus(DE3)]表达量最高,胞内酶活达到299 IU/L.重组质粒pTrc-99a-xyn B(S)在不同宿主胞内和胞外均能分泌目的蛋白,诱导10 h,胞外酶活pTrc-99a-xynB(S)[BL21 condon plus(DE3)]达到347 IU/L.而pET-20b-xynB(S)在两种BL21宿主中均不表达.经SDS-PAGE分析,以pTrc-99a和pET-20b作为表达载体时,重组蛋白相对分子质量分别约为45×103和30×103.与pET-20b相比,pTrc-99a以及自身信号肽的引导更有利于重组木聚糖酶的表达.     

植物乳杆菌BBE7的胆盐水解酶基因在毕赤酵母中的分泌表达

由于用大肠杆菌对植物乳杆菌来源的bsh基因进行胞内和胞外表达时,它们很容易形成包涵体,而且大肠杆菌的内毒素会显限制BSH的应用,所以利用毕赤酵母这一高效的表达系统对其进行了分泌表达.首先用融合PCR的方法将信号肽α-factor与BSH连接,然后再克隆到质粒pPIC9K上,得到重组质粒pPIC9K-α-factor-BSH.重组质粒经过SalⅠ线性化后转化至毕赤酵母GS115.表达产物经SDS-PAGE分析和酶活测定发现,重组BSH的相对分子质量(Mr)和胞外酶活分别为37.0×103和1.08 U mL-1.通过正交实验[L9(34)]对发酵条件优化后,胞外总酶活达到2.69 U mL-1,比原来提高了1.49倍.研究为胆盐水解酶的分离纯化、酶学性质研究以及大规模生产奠定了一定的基础.     

拟南芥硫酯酶基因(atfata)在大肠杆菌中的表达及其对游离脂肪酸合成的影响

硫酯酶催化脂酰ACP(酰基载体蛋白)水解生成游离脂肪酸和ACP载体蛋白,能够解除脂肪酸合成与磷脂合成的偶联,是获得游离脂肪酸的关键基因.将拟南芥的硫酯酶基因atfata克隆到原核表达载体pET30a上,在大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)中成功表达了His-tag融合蛋白,经SDS-PAGE检测获得特异性表达条带.对该重组菌株进行摇瓶发酵实验,GC-MS检测表明其与对照菌株脂肪酸组成并未发生变化;但其脂肪酸产量达到232.06 mg/L,比对照菌株提高了70%;同时胞外游离脂肪酸产量达到了33 mg/L,占总脂肪酸含量的15%,是野生菌株胞外脂肪酸产量的7倍.图3表2参17     

嗜热脂肪芽孢杆菌过氧化氢酶基因perA在大肠杆菌中的高效表达

利用PCR技术得到嗜热脂肪芽孢杆菌 (Bacillusstearothermophilus)过氧化氢酶基因 perA ,将该基因与表达载体 pKK2 2 3 3连接构建重组质粒pK perA ,转化大肠杆菌过氧化氢酶HPⅠ和HPⅡ双缺突变株UM 2 ,得到重组大肠杆菌UM 2 1.酶活测定结果表明 ,表达产物具有正常的生物学活性 .SDS PAGE电泳结果显示出明显的特异性表达条带 ,单体Mr =86× 10 3 ,与嗜热脂肪芽孢杆菌所产酶相同 .实验表明 ,重组质粒在宿主UM 2中有较好的稳定性 ,在无选择压力条件下传代 6 0次基本保持稳定 ,传代 10 0次重组质粒保留 80 %以上 .摇瓶实验确定重组菌的最佳表达条件为 :IPTG浓度 ,0 .75mmol/L ;诱导时间 3h ;培养基起始 pH 6 .5 ;诱导温度 37℃ ;装液量 5 0mL/ 2 5 0mL .在优化条件下 ,重组菌产生的过氧化氢酶占菌体总蛋白的 8% ,酶活力可达 35U/mL ,是原始菌株BacillusstearothermophilusIAM110 0 1的 11.7倍 .图 2表 1参 10     

荧光假单胞菌高效广谱载体的构建及分析

为促进高GC含量基因在荧光假单胞菌(Pseudomonas fluorescens)中表达效果更加理想、操作更加简便,本研究首先采用不依赖基因序列和连接反应的克隆(Sequence and ligation independent cloning,SLIC)方法将载体pCIBhis上与复制相关的序列和标记基因片段构建成克隆载体pCIBS1.然后优化荧光假单胞菌转化方法,用电转化法将pCIBS1导入荧光假单胞菌BL915中,随后又将T7和tac基因启动子分别插入pCIBS1中,成功构建了表达载体pCIBS3和pCIBS2.研究发现载体pCIBS1在大肠杆菌和荧光假单胞菌中均较为稳定,并且将绿色荧光蛋白基因插入表达载体中,在大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)中获得表达,验证了表达载体功能.本研究构建的表达载体和建立的荧光假单胞菌BL915电转化方法,为高GC含量基因在荧光假单胞菌中的表达奠定了基础.     

Rapid,recurring, structured survey versus bioblitz for generating biodiversity data and analysis with a multispecies abundance model

A bioblitz inexpensively and quickly generates biodiversity data, but bioblitzes are often conducted with haphazard, unreplicated sampling. Results tend to be taxonomically, geographically, or temporally biased, lack metadata, and consist of lists of observed taxa that do not enable further analyses or correction for imperfect detection. A rapid, recurring, structured survey (RRSS) uses a structured sampling design and temporal and spatial replication to survey randomly selected sites on a conservation property. We participated in a loosely structured bioblitz and a subsequent RRSS at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville (St. Clair County), Alabama (USA) to compare observed richness derived from the 2 survey approaches. The RRSS data structure enabled us to fit models that accounted for imperfect detection to estimate abundances, occupancy probabilities, and habitat associations. The loosely structured bioblitz data could not be used in such models. We present a new integrated multispecies abundance model that we applied to avian RRSS data. Our model extension enables estimation for the community, employs data augmentation to estimate the number of undetected species, and incorporates covariates. The RRSS generated a more comprehensive and less biased list of observed taxonomic richness than the loosely structured bioblitz (e.g., 73 vs. 45 bird species and 104 vs. 63 insect families from the RRSS vs. loosely structured bioblitz, respectively). Models fit to the RRSS data identified seasonal patterns in avian community composition and allowed for estimation of habitat–occupancy relationships for insect taxa. The RRSS protocol has potential for broad transferability as a standardized, quick, and inexpensive way to inventory biodiversity and estimate ecological parameters while providing an outreach opportunity.     

Compliance with and ecosystem function of biodiversity offsets in North American and European freshwaters

Land-use change via human development is a major driver of biodiversity loss. To reduce these impacts, billions of dollars are spent on biodiversity offsets. However, studies evaluating offset project effectiveness that examine components such as the overall compliance and function of projects remain rare. We reviewed 577 offsetting projects in freshwater ecosystems that included the metrics project size, type of aquatic system (e.g., wetland and creek), offsetting measure (e.g., enhancement, restoration, and creation), and an assessment of the projects’ compliance and functional success. Project information was obtained from scientific and government databases and gray literature. Despite considerable investment in offsetting projects, crucial problems persisted. Although compliance and function were related to each other, a high level of compliance did not guarantee a high degree of function. However, large projects relative to area had better function than small projects. Function improved when projects targeted productivity or specific ecosystem features and when multiple complementary management targets were in place. Restorative measures were more likely to achieve targets than creating entirely new ecosystems. Altogether the relationships we found highlight specific ecological processes that may help improve offsetting outcomes.     

A palaeo-hydrogeological model for arsenic contamination in southern and south-east Asia

An argument is presented in which areas of natural arsenic contamination of modern groundwaters throughout Asia have a common origin. Arsenic originally accumulated in oceanic ferro-manganoan sediments of the eastern Palaeo-Tethys. This was further concentrated through oceanic crustal extinction in what later became the south-east Chinese accreted mineralised terrain. Proto-Himalayan uplift of this area created the palaeo-drainage systems of the Ganges – Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Mekong, and Red Rivers, with consequent headwater erosion of arsenic-rich sediments. Their downstream deposition as immature and easily redistributed Neogene sandstones, silts, and iron-rich clays has created secondary and tertiary reservoirs of adsorbed and authigenic arsenic, from which the current arsenic-rich groundwaters have evolved. Considering river basins within the above palaeo-hydrogeological framework provides a basis for assessing the risk of arsenic in groundwater basins of south and south-eastern Asia.     

Cost‐effective conservation of an endangered frog under uncertainty

How should managers choose among conservation options when resources are scarce and there is uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of actions? Well‐developed tools exist for prioritizing areas for one‐time and binary actions (e.g., protect vs. not protect), but methods for prioritizing incremental or ongoing actions (such as habitat creation and maintenance) remain uncommon. We devised an approach that combines metapopulation viability and cost‐effectiveness analyses to select among alternative conservation actions while accounting for uncertainty. In our study, cost‐effectiveness is the ratio between the benefit of an action and its economic cost, where benefit is the change in metapopulation viability. We applied the approach to the case of the endangered growling grass frog (Litoria raniformis), which is threatened by urban development. We extended a Bayesian model to predict metapopulation viability under 9 urbanization and management scenarios and incorporated the full probability distribution of possible outcomes for each scenario into the cost‐effectiveness analysis. This allowed us to discern between cost‐effective alternatives that were robust to uncertainty and those with a relatively high risk of failure. We found a relatively high risk of extinction following urbanization if the only action was reservation of core habitat; habitat creation actions performed better than enhancement actions; and cost‐effectiveness ranking changed depending on the consideration of uncertainty. Our results suggest that creation and maintenance of wetlands dedicated to L. raniformis is the only cost‐effective action likely to result in a sufficiently low risk of extinction. To our knowledge we are the first study to use Bayesian metapopulation viability analysis to explicitly incorporate parametric and demographic uncertainty into a cost‐effective evaluation of conservation actions. The approach offers guidance to decision makers aiming to achieve cost‐effective conservation under uncertainty.     

Parasitic wasps orient to green leaf volatiles

Summary Undamaged plants emit low levels of green leaf volatiles (GLVs), while caterpillar-damaged and artificially damaged plants emit relatively higher levels of certain GLVs. Female braconid parasitoids,Microplitis croceipes, oriented to both damaged plants and to individual GLVs in no-choice tests in a wind tunnel, but seldom oriented to undamaged plants. Female ichneumonid parasitoids,Netelia heroica, also oriented to individual GLVs in a wind tunnel. Males of both wasp species failed to orient to the GLVs. These data show that leaf-feeding caterpillars can cause the release of GLVs, and that parasitic wasps can respond to these odors by flying upwind (chemoanemotactic response), which brings the wasps to their caterpillar hosts. This supports the hypothesis that plants communicate with members of the third trophic level,i.e., plants under herbivore attack emit chemical signals that guide natural enemies of herbivores to sites of plant damage. In this interaction, the GLVs serve as tritrophic plant-to-parasitoid synomones. That parasitoids from two different wasp families oriented to GLVs suggests that the response may be widespread among the Hymenoptera.Mention of a commercial or proprietary product does not constitute an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture     

Potential for Electropositive Metal to Reduce the Interactions of Atlantic Sturgeon with Fishing Gear

Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrhynchus) populations have been declared either endangered or threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Effective measures to repel sturgeon from fishing gear would be beneficial to both fish and fishers because they could reduce both fishery‐associated mortality and the need for seasonal and area closures of specific fisheries. Some chondrostean fishes (e.g., sturgeons and paddlefishes) can detect weak electric field gradients (possibly as low as 5 Μv/cm) due to arrays of electroreceptors (ampullae of Lorenzini) on their snout and gill covers. Weak electric fields, such as those produced by electropositive metals (typically mixtures of the lanthanide elements), could therefore potentially be used as a deterrent. To test this idea, we recorded the behavioral responses of juvenile Atlantic sturgeon (31–43 cm fork length) to electropositive metal (primarily a mixture of the lanthanide elements neodymium and praseodymium) both in the presence and absence of food stimuli. Trials were conducted in an approximately 2.5 m diameter × 0.3 m deep tank, and fish behaviors were recorded with an overhead digital video camera. Video records were subsequently digitized (x, y coordinate system), the distance between the fish and the electropositive metal calculated, and data summarized by compiling frequency distributions with 5‐cm bins. Juvenile sturgeon showed clear avoidance of electropositive metal but only when food was present. On the basis of our results, we conclude that the electropositive metals, or other sources of weak electric fields, may eventually be used to reduce the interactions of Atlantic sturgeon with fishing gear, but further investigation is needed. El Potencial del Metal Electropositivo para Reducir las Interacciones del Esturión Atlántico con Instrumentos de Pesca Bouyoucos, Bushnell & Brill 13–003     

The role of time and species identities in spatial patterns of species richness and conservation

Many conservation actions are justified on the basis of managing biodiversity. Biodiversity, in terms of species richness, is largely the product of rare species. This is problematic because the intensity of sampling needed to characterize communities and patterns of rarity or to justify the use of surrogates has biased sampling in favor of space over time. However, environmental fluctuations interacting with community dynamics lead to temporal variations in where and when species occur, potentially affecting conservation planning by generating uncertainty about results of species distribution modeling (including range determinations), selection of surrogates for biodiversity, and the proportion of biodiversity composed of rare species. To have confidence in the evidence base for conservation actions, one must consider whether temporal replication is necessary to produce broad inferences. Using approximately 20 years of macrofaunal data from tidal flats in 2 harbors, we explored variation in the identity of rare, common, restricted range, and widespread species over time and space. Over time, rare taxa were more likely to increase in abundance or occurrence than to remain rare or disappear and to exhibit temporal patterns in their occurrence. Space–time congruency in ranges (i.e., spatially widespread taxa were also temporally widespread) was observed only where samples were collected across an environmental gradient. Fifteen percent of the taxa in both harbors changed over time from having spatially restricted ranges to having widespread ranges. Our findings suggest that rare species can provide stability against environmental change, because the majority of species were not random transients, but that selection of biodiversity surrogates requires temporal validation. Rarity needs to be considered both spatially and temporally, as species that occur randomly over time are likely to play a different role in ecosystem functioning than those exhibiting temporal structure (e.g., seasonality). Moreover, temporal structure offers the opportunity to place management and conservation activities within windows of maximum opportunity.     

Main nutrient compounds in food bodies of Mexican <Emphasis Type="Italic">Acacia</Emphasis> ant-plants

Summary. Myrmecophytic plants use obligate ant mutualists as a constitutive indirect defence mechanism. These plants often produce cellular food bodies (FBs) to nourish their resident ants. Lipids, proteins, and even highly specialised compounds such as glycogen have been reported from FBs, but detailed chemical analyses of FB composition have so far been presented only for Southeast Asian Macaranga and Central American Piper myrmecophytes. Here we report the chemical composition of FBs of five myrmecophytic Acacia (Fabaceae) species from Mexico using HPLC (carbohydrates and proteins) and GC-MS (lipids). Feeding experiments revealed no hints on any use of external food sources by the inhabiting Pseudomyrmex ants. These ants obviously rely completely on FBs and extrafloral nectar provided by their hosts. The total content of nutrients in Acacia FBs was 15-25% of FB dry mass, being much lower than in Macaranga or Piper FBs. Proteins were dominating (8-14 % dm) in Acacia FBs and thus were present in higher amounts than in Macaranga FBs, yet in lower amounts than in Piper. Lipids contributed 1-9 % of dry mass, showing a lower proportion than in FBs of Macaranga or Piper. Carbohydrates made up 3-11 % dm, reaching in most Acacia species the same range as observed in Macaranga and in Piper FBs. Water content was 18-24 % of FB fresh mass, and structural tissue obviously made up a much higher proportion in Acacia FBs than in Macaranga or Piper FBs. Both characters might represent an adaptation to producing FBs unprotected at the leaf tips under dry conditions. Acacia FBs contain all amino acids and all fatty acids that are considered essential for insects, and their contents of lipids and proteins are higher than in the leaves from which they are ontogenetically derived. This indicates a putatively adaptive enrichment of nutritionally valuable compounds in structures functioning as ant-food.     

Examining the uncertain origin and management role of martens on Prince of Wales Island,Alaska

Conservation biologists are generally united in efforts to curtail the spread of non‐native species globally. However, the colonization history of a species is not always certain, and whether a species is considered non‐native or native depends on the conservation benchmark. Such ambiguities have led to inconsistent management. Within the Tongass National Forest of Alaska, the status of American marten (Martes americana) on the largest, most biologically diverse and deforested island, Prince of Wales (POW), is unclear. Ten martens were released to POW in the early 1930s, and it was generally believed to be the founding event, although this has been questioned. The uncertainty surrounding when and how martens colonized POW complicates management, especially because martens were selected as a design species for the Tongass. To explore the history of martens of POW we reviewed other plausible routes of colonization; genetically and isotopically analyzed putative marten fossils deposited in the late Pleistocene and early Holocene to verify marten occupancy of POW; and used contemporary genetic data from martens on POW and the mainland in coalescent simulations to identify the probable source of the present‐day marten population on POW. We found evidence for multiple routes of colonization by forest‐associated mammals beginning in the Holocene, which were likely used by American martens to naturally colonize POW. Although we cannot rule out human‐assisted movement of martens by Alaskan Natives or fur trappers, we suggest that martens be managed for persistence on POW. More generally, our findings illustrate the difficulty of labeling species as non‐native or native, even when genetic and paleo‐ecological data are available, and support the notion that community resilience or species invasiveness should be prioritized when making management decisions rather than more subjective and less certain conservation benchmarks.