The cholera toxin B subunit (CTB) is a nontoxic portion of the cholera toxin that retains mucosal adjuvant properties. Expression of CTB in Escherichia coli is difficult as CTB aggregates and accumulates as insoluble ...
详细信息
The cholera toxin B subunit (CTB) is a nontoxic portion of the cholera toxin that retains mucosal adjuvant properties. Expression of CTB in Escherichia coli is difficult as CTB aggregates and accumulates as insoluble inclusion bodies. To remedy this problem, the periplasmic chaperone, SKP, was investigated as possible co-expression partner to increase the solubility of recombinant CTB (rCTB) in E. coil. The result showed co-expression of SKP enhanced the soluble expression of rCTB in E. coli. Moreover, soluble rCTB was successfully expressed and secreted into the periplasmic space through the direction of the LTB leader signal. rCTB in periplasm was purified using an immobilized D-galactose resin;GM1-ELISA ex-periments showed that rCTB retains strong GM1 ganglioside-binding activity. Intranasal administration of ovalbumin (OVA) with rCTB significantly induced both mucosal and humoral immune responses specific to OVA. These data indicate that co-expression of the molecular chaperone SKP with CTB increased the solubility of rCTB while maintaining its function. (c) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Stand diversification is considered a promising management approach to increasing the multifunctionality and ecological stability of forests. However, how tree diversity affects higher trophic levels and their role in...
详细信息
Stand diversification is considered a promising management approach to increasing the multifunctionality and ecological stability of forests. However, how tree diversity affects higher trophic levels and their role in regulating forest functioning is not well explored particularly for (sub)tropical regions. We analyzed the effects of tree species richness, community composition, and functional diversity on the abundance, species richness, and beta diversity of important functional groups of herbivores and predators in a large-scale forest biodiversity experiment in south-east China. Tree species richness promoted the abundance, but not the species richness, of the dominant, generalist herbivores (especially, adult leaf chewers), probably through diet mixing effects. In contrast, tree richness did not affect the abundance of more specialized herbivores (larval leaf chewers, sap suckers) or predators (web and hunting spiders), and only increased the species richness of larval chewers. Leaf chemical diversity was unrelated to the arthropod data, and leaf morphological diversity only positively affected oligophagous herbivore and hunting spider abundance. However, richness and abundance of all arthropods showed relationships with community-weighted leaf trait means (CWM). The effects of trait diversity and CWMs probably reflect specific nutritional or habitat requirements. This is supported by the strong effects of tree species composition and CWMs on herbivore and spider beta diversity. Although specialized herbivores are generally assumed to determine herbivore effects in species-rich forests, our study suggests that generalist herbivores can be crucial for trophic interactions. Our results indicate that promoting pest control through stand diversification might require a stronger focus on identifying the best-performing tree species mixtures.
Arterial pulse waveform analysis has been widely used to reflect physiological changes in the cardiovascular system. This study aimed to comprehensively investigate the changes of waveform characteristics of both phot...
详细信息
Arterial pulse waveform analysis has been widely used to reflect physiological changes in the cardiovascular system. This study aimed to comprehensively investigate the changes of waveform characteristics of both photoplethysmographic (PPG) and radial pulses with gestational age during normal pregnancy. PPG and radial pulses were simultaneously recorded from 130 healthy pregnant women at seven gestational time points. After normalizing the arterial pulse waveforms, the abscissa of notch point, the total pulse area and the reflection index were extracted and compared between different measurement points and between the PPG and radial pulses using post-hoc multiple comparisons with Bonferrioni correction. The results showed that the effect of gestational age on all the three waveform characteristics was significant (all p < 0.001) after adjusting for maternal age, heart rate and blood pressures. All the three waveform characteristics demonstrated similar changing trends with gestational age, and they were all significantly different between the measurements from gestational week 12-15 and the others (all p < 0.05, except for the PPG total pulse area between the first and second measurement points). In conclusion, this study has comprehensively quantified similar changes of both PPG and radial pulse waveform characteristics with gestational age.
A novel storage and extraction method was developed for biofluids. Plasma spiked with four types of minor ginsenosides (Rg(2), Rg(3), Rh-1 and Rh-2) was used as a model biofluid to evaluate this method. The method was...
详细信息
A novel storage and extraction method was developed for biofluids. Plasma spiked with four types of minor ginsenosides (Rg(2), Rg(3), Rh-1 and Rh-2) was used as a model biofluid to evaluate this method. The method was based on solid-phase adsorption and ultrasonic-assisted nebulization coupled with solid phase extraction (SPA-UANE-SPE). Diatomaceous earth was used as an adsorbent to store the plasma for long periods of time at room temperature. Ultrasonic-assisted nebulization system-solid phase extraction was used to extract the four minor ginsenosides from the plasma. Some experimental parameters, such as the type and amount of the adsorbent, the ultrasonic-assisted nebulization extraction time, the pH of the extraction solution, the concentration of ZnSO4, the amount of C-18, and the type and volume of the eluent were investigated and optimized. Under the optimized conditions, the recoveries of four minor ginsenosides were in the range of 78.5-91.4%, and the RSDs are in the range of 3.5-4.4%. For the storage stability test, the stability of the method was better than that of 4 degrees C storage and was similar to that of -20 degrees C storage. Compared with other methods, the proposed method had a better extraction performance and was advantageous in terms of ease of operation, stable long term storage, and minimal requirements for storage conditions. Thus, this method may be effective for sample preparation in biofluid analysis.
暂无评论