TFEB activator protects against ethanol toxicity-induced cardiac injury by restoring mitophagy and autophagic flux.

Excessive alcohol consumption is a major cause of alcoholic cardiomyopathy (ACM) and myocardial injury. This study aims to investigate the role of transcription factor EB (TFEB) in ethanol-induced cardiac anomalies using a murine model, AC16 human cardiomyocytes, and human plasma. Wild-type mice treated with a TFEB activator (Compound 1) or vehicle (25 mg/kg/d) were challenged with or without ethanol (3 g/kg/d, i.

Novel mechanism for nisin resistance via proteolytic degradation of nisin by the nisin resistance protein NSR.

Nisin is a 34-residue antibacterial peptide produced by Lactococcus lactis that is active against a wide range of gram-positive bacteria. In non-nisin-producing L. lactis, nisin resistance could be conferred by a specific nisin resistance gene (nsr), which encodes a 35-kDa nisin resistance protein (NSR).

Secretory expression of nattokinase from Bacillus subtilis YF38 in Escherichia coli.

Nattokinase producing bacterium, B. subtilis YF38, was isolated from douchi, using the fibrin plate method. The gene encoding this enzyme was cloned by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Purification and characterization of two novel antimicrobial peptides Subpeptin JM4-A and Subpeptin JM4-B produced by Bacillus subtilis JM4.

An antimicrobial peptides-producing strain was isolated from soil and identified as Bacillus subtilis JM4 according to biochemical tests and 16S rDNA sequence analysis. The corresponding antimicrobial peptides were purified to homogeneity by ammonium sulfate precipitation, sequential SP-Sepharose Fast Flow, Sephadex G-25 and C18 reverse-phase chromatography, and in the final purification step, two active fractions were harvested, designated as Subpeptin JM4-A and Subpeptin JM4-B. The molecular weights, determined by mass spectrometry, were 1422.

[Site-directed mutagenesis of NisinZ and properties of NisinZ mutants].

According to the knowledge gained from engineering of nisinZ, using plasmid pHJ201 DNA as template, NisinZ was mutated by site-directed mutagenesis, NisinZ mutant T8S contains Serine at position 8 instead of Threonine, NisinZ mutant N27K/H31K contains Lysine at position 27 and 31, respectively, instead of Asparagine and Histidine and NisinZ mutant T2S/ H31K contains dehydrobutyrine and Lysine at position 2 and 31 instead of dehydroalanine and Histidine. They are cloned into pMG36e and expressed in L. Lactis NZ9800, the expression products of these mutants purified by Sephadex CM-25 and Sephadex G-25 chromatography, some properties of NisinZ mutants (T8S, T2S/H31K and N27K/H31K) were studied.

Bovicin HJ50, a novel lantibiotic produced by Streptococcus bovis HJ50.

A bacteriocin-producing strain was isolated from raw milk and named Streptococcus bovis HJ50. Like most bacteriocins produced by lactic acid bacteria, bovicin HJ50 showed a narrow range of inhibiting activity. It was sensitive to trypsin, subtilisin and proteinase K.

[Translational control of human interferon alpha 1 gene expression in E.coli].

Objective: To increase prokaryotic expression level of IFN-alpha 1C gene through the quantitative theory of translational control and the translational enhancer sequence.

Methods: Stepwise polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to alter the 5 terminal cDNA sequence of IFN-alpha 1C in three different grades of base mutation. In this way, the free energy (Delta G) of the secondary structure in translational initiation region (TIR) was decreased gradually.

[Food-grade gene expression systems for lactic acid bacteria].

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are important industrial microorganism used in the production and preservation of food-stuffs. Recently, considerable advances have been made in the genetics and molecular biology of LAB. These have resulted in the construction of food-grade gene expression systems for these bacteria.