Automated chemiluminescent dual-analyte immunoassay based on resolved immunosensing channels.

A novel system of series-wound immunosensing channels (SWIC) was proposed for automated chemiluminescent (CL) dual-analyte immunoassay by immobilizing respectively different capture antibodies on the inner walls of series-wound glass channels. This system could use a single enzyme as label to perform multiplex immunoassay in one fluid way. Using alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) as model analytes, the mixture including AFP, horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-labeled anti-AFP antibody, CEA and HRP-labeled anti-CEA antibody was introduced into the SWIC for carrying out the on-line incubation.

Effects of microgravity modeled by large gradient high magnetic field on the osteogenic initiation of human mesenchymal stem cells.

Microgravity (MG) leads to a decrease in osteogenic potential of human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). In the present study, we used large gradient high magnetic field (LGHMF) produced by a superconducting magnet to model MG (LGHMF-MG) and analyzed the effects of LGHMF-MG on survival, cytoskeleton and osteogenic potential of hMSCs. Results showed that the LGHMF-MG treatment for 6 h disrupted the cytoskeleton of hMSCs, and the LGHMF-MG treatment for 24 h led to cell death.

Protein structure prediction: do hydrogen bonding and water-mediated interactions suffice?

The many-body physics of hydrogen bond formation in alpha-helices of globular proteins was investigated using a simple physics-based model. Specifically, a context-sensitive hydrogen bond potential, which depends on residue identity and degree of solvent exposure, was used in the framework of the Associated Memory Hamiltonian codes developed previously but without using local-sequence structure matches ("memories"). Molecular dynamics simulations employing the energy function using the context-sensitive hydrogen bond potential alone (the "amnesiac" model) were used to generate low energy structures for three alpha-helical test proteins.

Total synthesis and stereochemical reassignment of tasiamide B.

The first total synthesis of tasiamide B, an octapeptide bearing 4-amino-3-hydroxy-5-phenylpentanoic acid unit isolated from the marine cyanobacteria Symploca sp. is described. A simple and efficient way was found to avoid the pyroglutamylation of N(alpha)-Me-Gln and led to a reassignment of the N(alpha)-Me-L-Phe of tasiamide B to be N(alpha)-Me-D-Phe, which was also supported by 1D and 2D NMR.

Convenient synthesis of sulfated oligofucosides.

Two types of sulfated octyl tetra- to octaoligofucosides with different sulfation patterns were synthesized employing a combination of stepwise elongation and convergent strategies in which trichloroacetimidates and thioglycosides were selected as the glycosyl donors.

Phosphoproteome analysis reveals regulatory sites in major pathways of cardiac mitochondria.

Mitochondrial functions are dynamically regulated in the heart. In particular, protein phosphorylation has been shown to be a key mechanism modulating mitochondrial function in diverse cardiovascular phenotypes. However, site-specific phosphorylation information remains scarce for this organ.

Decision making at a subcellular level determines the outcome of bacteriophage infection.

When the process of cell-fate determination is examined at single-cell resolution, it is often observed that individual cells undergo different fates even when subject to identical conditions. This "noisy" phenotype is usually attributed to the inherent stochasticity of chemical reactions in the cell. Here we demonstrate how the observed single-cell heterogeneity can be explained by a cascade of decisions occurring at the subcellular level.

Total synthesis of caminoside B, a novel antimicrobial glycolipid isolated from the marine sponge Caminus sphaeroconia.

The first total synthesis of caminoside B, a novel marine antimicrobial glycolipid isolated from the marine sponge Caminus sphaeroconia, was developed. This marine small molecule inhibitor (IC(50)=20 microM) targeting type III secretory pathway of bacterial pathogenesis was assembled in good yield via a '2+2+1' strategy based on stereocontrolled construction of the four glycosidic linkages.

Osteochondral repair using porous poly(lactide-co-glycolide)/nano-hydroxyapatite hybrid scaffolds with undifferentiated mesenchymal stem cells in a rat model.

In this study, a novel three-dimensional poly (lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA)/nano-hydroxyapatite (NHA) scaffold was fabricated by a thermally induced phase separation technique and its potential application in cartilage tissue-engineering was investigated. The PLGA scaffold was used as a control and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were seeded in both scaffolds. After 12-days culture, SEM images and confocal laser scanning microscopy illustrated that MSCs attached more moderately and more cells distributed in PLGA/NHA scaffolds.

Alteration of serotonin transporter messenger RNA level in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells from simian/human immunodeficiency virus infected Chinese rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).

Serotonin transporter (SERT, 5-HTT) is a key element in the serotonergic system which is probably involved in the psychiatric disorders commonly observed in people living with HIV/AIDS. However, no information is available about the effects of HIV infection on SERT expression. In this study, a TaqMan real-time RT-PCR method was established, levels of SERT mRNA in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and various tissues from normal Chinese rhesus macaques, in PBMCs from 32 SHIV-sf162p4 infected rhesus macaques and from 8 rhesus macaques before and 7, 14, 21, 28 and 196 days after SHIV-sf162p4 infection, and in PBMCs before and after in vitro phytohemagglutinin (PHA) stimulation were examined.

Automated support-resolution strategy for a one-way chemiluminescent multiplex immunoassay.

An automated support-resolution strategy was designed to couple with a flow-through immunosensing system for performing a one-way chemiluminescent (CL) multiplex immunoassay. Different from multilabel and multichannel-based detection techniques, this immunoassay method employed a single horseradish peroxidase (HRP) label in one way. With the use of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) as model analytes, the capture antibodies for CEA and AFP were immobilized on the inner wall of a glass tube and the surface of paramagnetic microspheres (PMs), respectively.

Proliferation and multi-differentiation potentials of human mesenchymal stem cells on thermoresponsive PDMS surfaces grafted with PNIPAAm.

The thermo-responsivity of PNIPAAm [poly(N-isopropylcarylamide)]-grafted PDMS [poly(dimethylsiloxane)] surface is a property that could be feasibly used for detaching cells adhered on the surface. We used benzophenone-initiated photopolymerization to graft PNIPAAm on PDMS substrates to construct the PNIPAAm-grafted PDMS surface and this PDMS surface was highly thermo-responsive. hMSCs (human mesenchymal stem cells) were used to analyse the proliferation and multi-differentiation of stem cells on the PNIPAAm-grafted PDMS surface.

[Vasoactive intestinal peptide enhances angiogenesis after focal cerebral ischemia].

Objective: To investigate the effect of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) on angiogenesis after focal cerebral ischemia.

Methods: Focal cerebral ischemia was induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 120 min in adult SD rats with intracerebroventricular VIP administration at the beginning of reperfusion. Immunohistochemistry was performed to assay BrdU immunoreactive endothelial cells, expressions of VEGF, flt-1 and flk-1 in the ischemic zone, and the protein expressions of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the brain was measured using Western blotting.

Vasoactive intestinal peptide in rats with focal cerebral ischemia enhances angiogenesis.

We studied the effect of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) on angiogenesis in the ischemic boundary area after focal cerebral ischemia. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats underwent middle cerebral artery occlusion for 2 h. A single dose of VIP was given via i.

The efficacy of Combizym in the treatment of Chinese patients with dyspepsia: a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled and cross-over study: Shanghai Combizym Clinical Cooperative Group.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Combizym treatment in Chinese patients with dyspepsia.

Methods: In this multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled cross-over study, a total of 151 patients (76 men and 75 women, mean age: 44.67 +/- 6.

[Risk factors of irritable bowel syndrome in adolescents in China].

Objective: To explore the risk factors for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) among school adolescents in China.

Method: A stratified, randomized study by cluster sampling was conducted, which recruited 51,956 students from high and primary schools in Chinese cities. All students were requested to fill in a questionnaire.

[Effects of silencing connective tissue growth factor on rat transforming growth factor beta/Smads signal].

Objective: To investigate the effects of small interfering RNA targeting connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) on rat transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta)/Smads signal pathway.

Methods: Chemically synthetic siRNA targeting CTGF was transfected into HSC T6 and then they were injected into rat livers through their intraportal veins. At the same time these rats also received CCl4 subcutaneously every three days for 6 consecutive weeks.

Two-dimensional electrophoresis-based characterization of post-translational modifications of mammalian 20S proteasome complexes.

PTMs serve as key regulatory mechanisms for 20S proteasome functions. Alterations in 20S PTMs have been previously observed with changes in modified protein degradation patterns and altered cellular phenotypes. Despite decades of investigation, our knowledge pertaining to the various PTMs of 20S complexes and their biological significance remain limited.

Contrasting proteome biology and functional heterogeneity of the 20 S proteasome complexes in mammalian tissues.

The 20 S proteasome complexes are major contributors to the intracellular protein degradation machinery in mammalian cells. Systematic administration of proteasome inhibitors to combat disease (e.g.

[Vasoactive intestinal peptide attenuates apoptosis and iNOS protein expression induced by cerebral ischemia in the rat].

Objective: To explore the neuroprotective action of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) on ischemia and reperfusion in the rat.

Methods: VIP was given via intracerebroventriclar injection after a 2 hour transient middle cerebral artery occlusion using filament model. The infarct volume was investigated with TTC stain.

[Effects of different forest management alternatives on Sciurus vulgaris habitat].

A spatially explicit landscape model LANDIS was applied to simulate the forest landscape changes under four management alternatives (no cutting, clear cutting, selective cutting I and II) in Youhao Forestry Bureau located in Small Xing' an Mountain from 2000 to 2200. The outcomes from LANDIS were combined with a landscape-level habitat suitability index (HSI) model in a GIS environment to assess Sciurus vulgaris habitat quality. The results showed that the increase of suitable habitat area and the decrease of marginally suitable area were the fastest under no cutting scenario, and the slowest under clear cutting scenario.

Revealing the dynamics of the 20 S proteasome phosphoproteome: a combined CID and electron transfer dissociation approach.

The 20 S proteasomes play a critical role in intracellular homeostasis and stress response. Their function is tuned by covalent modifications, such as phosphorylation. In this study, we performed a comprehensive characterization of the phosphoproteome for the 20 S proteasome complexes in both the murine heart and liver.

Altered proteome biology of cardiac mitochondria under stress conditions.

Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion induces mitochondrial dysfunction and, depending upon the degree of injury, may lead to cardiac cell death. However, our ability to understand mitochondrial dysfunction has been hindered by an absence of molecular markers defining the various degrees of injury. To address this paucity of knowledge, we sought to characterize the impact of ischemic damage on mitochondrial proteome biology.

RACK1 and CIS mediate the degradation of BimEL in cancer cells.

RACK1 is a 7-WD motif-containing protein with numerous downstream effectors regulating various cellular functions. Using a yeast two-hybrid screen, we identified dynein light chain 1 as a novel interacting partner of RACK1. Additionally, we demonstrated that RACK1 formed a complex with DLC1 and Bim, specifically BimEL, in the presence of apoptotic agents.

Variationally determined free energy profiles for structural models of proteins: characteristic temperatures for folding and trapping.

Characterizing the phase diagram for proteins is important both for laboratory studies and for the development of structure prediction algorithms. Using a variational scheme, we calculated the generic features of the protein thermostability over a large range of temperatures for a set of more than 50 different proteins using a model based on native structure alone. Focusing on a specific system, protein G, we further examined, using a more realistic model that includes the nonnative interaction, the thermostability of both the native state and a collection of trap structures.