Promotive Effect of Glutathione on the Formation of DNA-Protein Crosslinks Induced by Formaldehyde in vitro and in vivo

研究发现,在环境水平的甲醛染毒之后,动物体内的谷胱甘肽(GSH)含量会发生显著减少,并呈现剂量-效应关系.值得思索的是,GSH的减少对甲醛所致的遗传毒性指标DNA-蛋白质交联(DPC)没有明显的保护作用.为了深入探讨GSH与甲醛的联合作用,进行了体外和体内两项实验.体外实验以Hela细胞为实验材料,实验组分为4组:对照组、250μMGSH组、250μM甲醛组、250μM甲醛和250μMGSH联合作用组;体内实验以昆明小鼠为实验材料,采用腹腔注射方法连续染毒两周.实验组分为4组:对照组、1mMGSH组、1mM甲醛组、1mM甲醛和1mM GSH联合作用组.体外实验与体内实验结果表明,单独GSH染毒组所致DPC与试剂对照组之间没有统计学差异(p>0.05;p>0.05),甲醛染毒组所致DPC显著高于对照组(p<0.01;p<0.05),联合作用组所致DPC不但显著高于试剂对照组(p<0.01;p<0.01)而且还显著高于甲醛染毒组(p<0.05;p<0.01).结果提示,GSH单独作用不能诱导DPC形成,但是GSH对甲醛所致的DPC具有促进作用.同时论文对这种协同作用的发生机制进行了讨论,作者认为GSH与甲醛的协同作用,和GSH与一氧化氮的协同作用的分子机制类似。     

邻苯二甲酸二乙基己酯（DEHP）对金鲫鱼脑细胞DNA的损伤

为了研究邻苯二甲酸二乙基己酯(DEHP)对金鲫鱼(Carassius auratu)脑细胞DNA的损伤作用,采用不同浓度的DEHP溶液(0、25、50、100、200mg·L-1)对体外培养脑细胞进行染毒,应用单细胞凝胶电泳(彗星实验)检测脑细胞DNA的损伤效应.结果表明,染毒1.5h后,与对照组相比,DEHP各染毒组细胞尾部DNA百分率(Tail DNA%)和尾矩(Tail Moment)均显著升高(p<0.01),即DEHP染毒引起了脑细胞DNA的严重断裂;随着DEHP浓度的增加,DNA损伤程度加剧,细胞尾部DNA百分率及尾距与DEHP染毒浓度呈明显的剂量-效应关系.以上结果表明,DEHP可导致金鲫鱼脑细胞DNA损伤。     

A mini-microbial fuel cell for voltage testing of exoelectrogenic bacteria

Current methods for testing the electricity generation capacity of isolates are time- and labor-consuming. This paper presents a rapid voltage testing system of exoelectrogenic bacteria called Quickscreen, which is based on a microliter microbial fuel cell (MFC). Geobacter sulfurreducens and Shewanella baltica were used as the model exoelectrogenic bacteria; Escherichia coli that cannot generate electricity was used as a negative control. It was found that the electricity generation capacity of the isolates could be determined within about five hours by using Quickscreen, and that its time was relatively rapid compared with the time needed by using larger MFCs. A parallel, stable, and low background voltage was achieved using titanium as a current collector in the blank run. The external resistance had little impact on the blank run during the initial period. The cathode with a five-hole configuration, used to hydrate the carbon cathode, gave higher cathode potential than that with a one-hole configuration. Steady discharge and current interrupt methods showed that the anode mostly contributed to the large internal resistance of the Quickscreen system. However, the addition of graphite felt decreased the resistance from 18 to 5 kΩ. This device was proved to be useful to rapidly evaluate the electricity generation capacity of different bacteria.     

Studies on Formation of Liquid and Gaseous Formaldehyde-Induced DNA-Protein Crosslinks in Rat Marrow Cells

甲醛是一种遗传毒物,流行病学研究表明甲醛可能具有诱导白血病的作用,然而甲醛诱导白血病的机制目前还不清楚. 以不同浓度液态和气态甲醛对大鼠骨髓细胞进行染毒,采用KCl-SDS 法检测了骨髓细胞 DNA-蛋白质交联程度,并采用单细胞凝胶电泳技术(彗星实验)检测了骨髓细胞 DNA 链断裂程度. 研究结果表明:与对照组相比,低浓度甲醛(液态甲醛浓度为:5μmol·L-1和25μmol·L-1;气态甲醛浓度为:0.5mg·m-3 和 1.0mg·m-3)可以引起 DNA断裂水平显著增高 (p<0.01);而高浓度甲醛 (液态甲醛浓度为:125μmol·L-1 和 625μmol·L-1;气态甲醛浓度为:3.0mg·m-3)则可以引起 DNA-蛋白质交联水平显著增高(p<0.01; p<0.05). 研究结果提示:甲醛染毒可以导致大鼠骨髓细胞DNA的损伤,暗示甲醛诱导白血病具有高度的可能性.     

污泥厌氧发酵液燃料电池的性能及电子供体分析

采用剩余污泥厌氧发酵液为阳极燃料、铁氰化钾溶液为阴极电子受体,成功启动了双室微生物燃料电池(MFC).考察了厌氧发酵过程中剩余污泥上清液中各种挥发性脂肪酸(VFAs)含量的变化,研究分析了污泥厌氧发酵液燃料电池的产电过程、燃料消耗及电子供体. 结果表明,污泥厌氧发酵液中乙酸含量最高(约占总VFAs的50%),异戊酸和丙酸含量次之(分别约占总VFAs的18%及15%),正丁酸和异丁酸含量较少(均低于总VFAs的10%),正戊酸含量最低(低于总VFAs的1%);MFC实现了250h稳定电压输出(0.65±0.05V),库伦效率为9.09%;阳极总化学需氧量(TCOD)、溶解性化学需氧量(SCOD)、VFAs均呈现整体下降趋势, TCOD和SCOD的去除率分别为74.9%和86.4%; VFAs的完全消耗伴随着反应器产电性能迅速变差,表明VFAs是主要电子供体;在MFC产电过程中, VFAs的消耗与产生同时存在,消耗总体快于产生;各种VFAs消耗快慢依次为:乙酸>正丁酸>丙酸>正戊酸>异戊酸>异丁酸.     

Effect of a popular Middle Eastern food (Falafel) on rat liver

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of short-term consumption of oil and frying oil extracted from falafel patties, and then to study the long-term effect of consumption of falafel patties on rat liver gross morphology and serum liver enzymes. The frying oil quality was assessed using thiobarbituric acid reaction on rat liver homogenate. Frying oil and oil extracted from falafel patties were administered to male Wistar albino rats via gavage for 5 days. Blood samples were collected and the activities of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and bilirubin levels were determined. Livers were weighed and gross morphology was assessed. For the long-term effect of falafel consumption, rats were fed falafel patties for 30 days, and then blood samples were collected and assayed for the above-mentioned parameters. Short-term consumption of falafel extracts and frying oil did not cause any significant difference in the liver function tests and liver gross morphology. Whereas, long-term consumption of falafel patties caused a significant increase in ALP, ALT, bilirubin level and increased liver weight/body weight ratio denoting hepatotoxicity. This indicates that consumption of large amounts of falafel on daily basis might lead to hepatotoxicity.     

Teratogenic and biochemical effects of a formulation containing dicofol in the chick embryo

The insecticide formulation, dicofol (18.5% EC) was evaluated for its toxic potential in developing chick embryo. Fertilized eggs of Gallus domesticus on 4th day of incubation were immersed in aqueous emulsions of dicofol at concentrations of 250?mg?L^?1, 500?mg?L^?1, and 1000?mg?L^?1 for 60?min at 37°C. These concentrations were corresponding to those used in plant protection practice (500?mg?L^?1). Two control groups of eggs were used: one group was immersed in distilled water (vehicle) and the second group was kept as untreated to study background toxicity. On embryonic day 7; recovered embryos were evaluated for mortality rate, wet body weight, gross morphological malformations, and some biochemical changes. The result revealed that administration of dicofol did not result in significant changes in wet body weight of embryo but the survival rate of dicofol treated embryos were markedly reduced as compared with controls. Among the survivors, the number of malformations was exhibited by dicofol treated embryos in dose-dependent manner. Among biochemical changes, only total protein content of embryo significantly (p?≤?0.05) reduced to 500?mg?L^?1 and 1000?mg?L^?1. Among enzymes, alkaline phosphatase and glutamate pyruvate transaminase activities were affected, which showed significant elevations.     

Alteration of photosystem II activity by atrazine on Chlamydomonas reinhardtii synchronized and asynchronized cell cycle cultures

Inhibition of photosystem II (PSII) activity by atrazine was investigated in the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii during different states of the cell cycle. The algal cultures were maintained under continuous light or under light/dark cycle (16/8?h) to obtain homogenized cell cycle distribution. The cycle state of algal population was determined by the DNA content using flow cytometry and defined as newly divided cells before the initiation of DNA replication (G₀/G₁) and cells at the end of the replication cycle with fully duplicated DNA content (G₂/M). Under different synchronized states of the cell population, the photosynthetic activity was investigated after treatment at 10, 100, and 1000?µmol?L^?1 atrazine exposed for 24?h by using fluorescence parameters related to PSII activity measured with a plant efficiency analyzer and pulse-amplitude modulated methods. In this study, we found that the atrazine effect was different depending on cell cycle phases and the period of illumination. Algal cells under light–dark cycle showed inhibition of the PSII electron transport leading to an increase of heat energy dissipation by the PSII reaction center. Algal cells grown under continuous light was shown to be more resistant to atrazine than the cells grown under light–dark cycle.     

土荆芥挥发油对豌豆根边缘细胞的诱导和胁迫作用

为探讨化感胁迫对根边缘细胞的诱导效应,实验采用悬空气培养法培养豌豆(Pisum sativum L.)露白种子,在保留根边缘细胞和去除根边缘细胞状态下,选取相对根长、根边缘细胞数量及死亡率、果胶甲基酯酶（PME）等指标研究了豌豆根边缘细胞对不同剂量土荆芥挥发油化感作用的响应。结果表明：1）与对照相比,随着挥发油处理剂量增加,根的伸长被显著抑制（P<0.05）。2）每个处理时间内,随着土荆芥挥发油剂量增加,根边缘细胞数量整体表现出先增加后减少的趋势,在低剂量2μL处理中达极大值。3）土荆芥挥发油诱导豌豆根边缘细胞死亡,随着处理时间的延长和处理剂量的增加,这种毒害效应程度加剧,除去边缘细胞实验组中10μL挥发油处理24 h时,根边缘细胞死亡率达到100%。在较低剂量挥发油作用下,保留根边缘细胞组的根边缘细胞死亡率高于去除根边缘细胞组,而在高剂量挥发油处理情况则相反。4）在同一处理时间,随挥发油剂量增加,各处理组PME活性持续升高,去处边缘细胞组处理24 h后不同剂量处理皆显著高于对照,而根边缘细胞数量总体表现先增加后减少。综合以上结果,保留根边缘细胞的根尖根边缘细胞的数量减少量较少,说明根边缘细胞能缓解土荆芥挥发油的化感胁迫;去除根边缘细胞组的PME活性升高较多,表明土荆芥化感胁迫诱导了根边缘细胞的产生。     

A Pt-Bi bimetallic nanoparticle catalyst for direct electrooxidation of formic acid in fuel cells

Direct formic acid fuel cells are a promising portable power-generating device, and the development of efficient anodic catalysts is essential for such a fuel cell. In this work Pt-Bi nanoparticles supported on micro-fabricated gold wire array substrate were synthesized using an electrochemical deposition method for formic acid oxidation in fuel cells. The surface morphology and element components of the Pt-Bi/Au nanoparticles were characterized, and the catalytic activities of the three Pt-Bi/Au nanoparticle electrodes with different Pt/Bi ratios for formic acid oxidation were evaluated. It was found that Pt₄Bi₉₆/Au had a much higher catalytic activity than Pt₁₁Bi₈₉/Au and Pt₁₃Bi₈₇/Au, and Pt₄Bi₉₆/Au exhibited a current density of 2.7 mA·cm^-2, which was 27-times greater than that of Pt/Au. The electro-catalytic activity of the Pt-Bi/Au electrode for formic acid oxidation increased with the increasing Bi content, suggesting that it would be possible to achieve an efficient formic acid oxidation on the low Pt-loading. Therefore, the Pt-Bi/Au electrode offers a promising catalyst with a high activity for direct oxidation of formic acid in fuel cells.