Biomedical subjects

Jinyuan Liu

Publications and source records attributed to Jinyuan Liu.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

A sagittally focusing double-multilayer monochromator for ultrafast X-ray imaging applications.

The development of a sagittally focusing double-multilayer monochromator is reported, which produces a spatially extended wide-bandpass X-ray beam from an intense synchrotron bending-magnet source at the Advanced Photon Source, for ultrafast X-ray radiography and tomography applications. This monochromator consists of two W/B(4)C multilayers with a 25 A period coated on Si single-crystal substrates. The second multilayer is mounted on a sagittally focusing bender, which can dynamically change the bending radius of the multilayer in order to condense and focus the beam to various points along the beamline. With this new apparatus, it becomes possible to adjust the X-ray beam size to best match the area detector size and the object size to facilitate more efficient data collection using ultrafast X-ray radiography and tomography.

Equipment Design↗

PubMed2006

Isolation of the promoter of a cotton beta-galactosidase gene (GhGal1) and its expression in transgenic tobacco plants.

Beta-galactosidases (EC 3.2.1.23) constitute a widespread family of glycosyl hydrolases in plants and are thought to be involved in metabolism of cell wall polysaccharides. A cDNA of the cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) beta-galactosidase gene, designated GhGal1, has previously been identified and its transcripts are highly abundant at the elongation stage of the cotton fiber. To examine the temporal and spatial control of GhGal1 expression, a transcriptional fusion of the GhGal1 promoter region (1770 bp) with the beta-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene was introduced into tobacco plants by the Agrobacterium infection method. The resulting transgenic plants showed higher GUS activity of fruit in the transgenic plants than that in the negative and positive controls. Histochemical localization of GUS activity demonstrated that the expression of the GUS gene could be found in the meristem zones of roots, cotyledons, vascular tissues, fruit and trichomes in transgenic tobacco plants. Additionally, sequence analysis of the regulatory region also revealed several conserved motifs among which some were shared with previously reported fruit/seed-specific elements and the others were related with trichome expression. These results indicated the temporal and spatial expression characterization of the GhGal1 promoter in transgenic tobacco plants and provided an important insight into the roles of GhGal1 in cotton fiber development.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed2005

RNA interference identifies a calcium-dependent protein kinase involved in Medicago truncatula root development.

Changes in cellular or subcellular Ca2+ concentrations play essential roles in plant development and in the responses of plants to their environment. However, the mechanisms through which Ca2+ acts, the downstream signaling components, as well as the relationships among the various Ca2+-dependent processes remain largely unknown. Using an RNA interference-based screen for gene function in Medicago truncatula, we identified a gene that is involved in root development. Silencing Ca2+-dependent protein kinase1 (CDPK1), which is predicted to encode a Ca2+-dependent protein kinase, resulted in significantly reduced root hair and root cell lengths. Inactivation of CDPK1 is also associated with significant diminution of both rhizobial and mycorrhizal symbiotic colonization. Additionally, microarray analysis revealed that silencing CDPK1 alters cell wall and defense-related gene expression. We propose that M. truncatula CDPK1 is a key component of one or more signaling pathways that directly or indirectly modulates cell expansion or cell wall synthesis, possibly altering defense gene expression and symbiotic interactions.

Arabidopsis Proteins↗

PubMed2005

A proteomic analysis of cold stress responses in rice seedlings.

Using proteomic analysis, an investigation aimed at a better understanding of the molecular adaptation mechanisms of cold stress was carried out in rice (Oryza sativa). The seedlings were exposed to a progressively low temperature stress treatment from normal temperature to 15, 10, and 5 degrees C. Proteins were extracted from the leaves collected from both control and stressed seedlings. By fractionation, approximately 1700 protein spots were separated and visualized on CBB-stained 2-D gels. Sixty protein spots were found to be up-regulated in responding to the progressively low temperature stress and displayed different dynamic patterns. As an initial work, 41 of these proteins were identified using MALDI-TOF MS or ESI/MS/MS. These cold responsive proteins, besides two proteins of unknown function, include four factors of protein biosynthesis, four molecular chaperones, two proteases, and eight enzymes involved in biosynthesis of cell wall components, seven antioxidative/detoxifying enzymes, and proteins linked to energy pathway, as well as a protein involved in signal transduction. The functional proteomes illuminate the facts, at least in plant cell, that protein quality control mediated by chaperones and proteases and enhancement of cell wall components play important roles in tolerance to cold stress. Using TargetP program, the subcellular localization of the identified proteins was analyzed. Proteins (43.9%) were predicted to be located in the chloroplasts, implying that chloroplast proteome is virtually subjective to cold stress. The physiological implications, revealed from the experimental data, are discussed in context of a complex metabolic network in plant cells responsive to cold stress.

5-Methyltetrahydrofolate-Homocysteine S-Methyltran↗

PubMed2005

Spectroscopic characterization of metal bound phytochelatin analogue (Glu-Cys)4-Gly.

The metal ion binding properties of a phytochelatin (PC) analogue, (Glu-Cys)4-Gly (named as EC4), have been studied by a divalent metal ion binding assay monitored by UV-visible spectroscopy, circular dichroism and NMR spectroscopy. Spectro- photometric titration with different divalent metal ions have revealed that the stiochoimetry of metal-bound EC4 was 1:1, and its metal binding affinities with different divalent metal ions in the order of Cd(II)>Cu(II)>Zn(II)>Pb(II)>Ni(II)>Co(II). UV-visible spectroscopic analysis of metal complexes indicated that four sulfur atoms in cysteine residues are attributable to ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) between divalent metal ions and EC4, and further confirmed by 1D H1 NMR study and Circular Dichroism. In addition, Circular Dichroism spectra of both free and metal-bound forms of EC4 revealed that metal coordination drives the nonapeptide chain to fold into a turned conformation. The comprehensive analysis of spectroscopic properties of the nonapeptide complexed with metal ions not only provides a fundamental description of the metal ion binding properties of PC analogue, but also shows a correlation between metal binding affinity of PC analogue and the induction activity of metal ions.

Amino Acids↗

PubMed2004

Palaeontology: parental care in an ornithischian dinosaur.

Crocodilians and birds show extensive parental care of their young, but whether this behaviour evolved independently in these two groups of living archosaurs is unknown - in part because features of parenting among related fossil groups such as dinosaurs are unclear. A dramatic specimen of the small ornithischian dinosaur Psittacosaurus sp. (Dalian Natural History Museum D2156) from Liaoning in China reveals a single adult clustered with 34 juveniles within an area of 0.5 square metres, providing strong evidence for post-hatching parental care in Dinosauria.

Alligators and Crocodiles↗

PubMed2003

Crystal structure of tabtoxin resistance protein complexed with acetyl coenzyme A reveals the mechanism for beta-lactam acetylation.

Tabtoxin resistance protein (TTR) is an enzyme that renders tabtoxin-producing pathogens, such as Pseudomonas syringae, tolerant to their own phytotoxins. Here, we report the crystal structure of TTR complexed with its natural cofactor, acetyl coenzyme A (AcCoA), to 1.55A resolution. The binary complex forms a characteristic "V" shape for substrate binding and contains the four motifs conserved in the GCN5-related N-acetyltransferase (GNAT) superfamily, which also includes the histone acetyltransferases (HATs). A single-step mechanism is proposed to explain the function of three conserved residues, Glu92, Asp130 and Tyr141, in catalyzing the acetyl group transfer to its substrate. We also report that TTR possesses HAT activity and suggest an evolutionary relationship between TTR and other GNAT members.

Acetyl Coenzyme A↗

PubMed2003

Transcript profiling coupled with spatial expression analyses reveals genes involved in distinct developmental stages of an arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis.

The formation of symbiotic associations with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi is a phenomenon common to the majority of vascular flowering plants. Here, we used cDNA arrays to examine transcript profiles in Medicago truncatula roots during the development of an AM symbiosis with Glomus versiforme and during growth under differing phosphorus nutrient regimes. Three percent of the genes examined showed significant changes in transcript levels during the development of the symbiosis. Most genes showing increased transcript levels in mycorrhizal roots showed no changes in response to high phosphorus, suggesting that alterations in transcript levels during symbiosis were a consequence of the AM fungus rather than a secondary effect of improved phosphorus nutrition. Among the mycorrhiza-induced genes, two distinct temporal expression patterns were evident. Members of one group showed an increase in transcripts during the initial period of contact between the symbionts and a subsequent decrease as the symbiosis developed. Defense- and stress-response genes were a significant component of this group. Genes in the second group showed a sustained increase in transcript levels that correlated with the colonization of the root system. The latter group contained a significant proportion of new genes similar to components of signal transduction pathways, suggesting that novel signaling pathways are activated during the development of the symbiosis. Analysis of the spatial expression patterns of two mycorrhiza-induced genes revealed distinct expression patterns consistent with the hypothesis that gene expression in mycorrhizal roots is signaled by both cell-autonomous and cell-nonautonomous signals.

Expressed Sequence Tags↗

PubMed2003

Site-directed mutagenesis and preliminary x-ray crystallographic studies of the tabtoxin resistance protein.

Tabtoxin resistance protein (TTR) is an enzyme that catalyzes the acetylation of tabtoxin rendering tabtoxin-producing pathogens tolerant to their own phytotoxins. According to the structure based detoxification mechanism of TTR, three site-directed mutants Y141F, D130N and Y141F-D130N were constructed and overexpressed in E. coli. The products were then purified and their properties were analyzed by CD and DLS. Crystallization trials of two mutants Y141F andY141F-D130N were preformed.

Acetylation↗

PubMed2002

Tabtoxin-resistant protein: overexpression, purification, and characterization.

One of the self-protection mechanisms in Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci, a pathogen of tobacco wildfire, is thought to be due to its tabtoxin-resistance gene (ttr). In this study, the ttr gene was inserted into an expression vector, pQE30, and successfully expressed in Escherichia coli M15 at high levels. The purified recombinant tabtoxin-resistant protein (TTR) had an apparent molecular mass of about 21 kDa on SDS-PAGE as well as by mass spectroscopy and had a pI of 6.6 on isoelectric focusing-PAGE. Spectral analysis showed that TTR possesses a maximum fluorescence wavelength (lambda(max)) of 325 nm upon excitation at 282 nm and a positive band with a maximum at 195 nm and a broad negative band with a minimum at 215 nm in the far-UV CD spectrum. The spectrophotometric assay demonstrated the strong detoxification activity of TTR. These results are the first report of the characterization of the purified tabtoxin-resistant protein. Its capacity to detoxify tabtoxinine-beta-lactam shows that it must be one of the self-protection mechanisms in pv. tabaci.

Acetyltransferases↗

PubMed2002

A phosphate transporter from Medicago truncatula involved in the acquisition of phosphate released by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

Many plants have the capacity to obtain phosphate via a symbiotic association with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. In AM associations, the fungi release phosphate from differentiated hyphae called arbuscules, that develop within the cortical cells, and the plant transports the phosphate across a symbiotic membrane, called the periarbuscular membrane, into the cortical cell. In Medicago truncatula, a model legume used widely for studies of root symbioses, it is apparent that the phosphate transporters known to operate at the root-soil interface do not participate in symbiotic phosphate transport. EST database searches with short sequence motifs shared by known phosphate transporters enabled the identification of a novel phosphate transporter from M. truncatula, MtPT4. MtPT4 is significantly different from the plant root phosphate transporters cloned to date. Complementation of yeast phosphate transport mutants indicated that MtPT4 functions as a phosphate transporter, and estimates of the K(m) suggest a relatively low affinity for phosphate. MtPT4 is expressed only in mycorrhizal roots, and the MtPT4 promoter directs expression exclusively in cells containing arbuscules. MtPT4 is located in the membrane fraction of mycorrhizal roots, and immunolocalization revealed that MtPT4 colocalizes with the arbuscules, consistent with a location on the periarbuscular membrane. The transport properties and spatial expression patterns of MtPT4 are consistent with a role in the acquisition of phosphate released by the fungus in the AM symbiosis.

Amino Acid Sequence↗