Biomedical subjects

Wei-Da Huang

Publications and source records attributed to Wei-Da Huang.

14 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Cost-effective method of siRNA preparation and its application to inhibit hepatitis B virus replication in HepG2 cells.

AIM: To find a cost-effective method of preparation of short interfering RNAs based on cloning, fermentation, digestion and purification (CFDP) and test its feasibility to inhibit hepatitis B virus replication in cell culture. METHODS: We constructed an expression vector containing T7 and tac promoter in a head-to-head orientation. cDNA fragment of interest was cloned into this vector between the opposing promoters. dsRNAs were expressed with this vector in Escherichia coli, and purified by affinity chromatography using CF 11 column. They were digested by RNase III in a buffer containing manganese ions, then separated on 15% non-denaturing PAGE, and the siRNAs about 25 bp in length were recovered. siRNAs prepared with CFDP were co-transfected with target gene expression plasmid into human cell lines with lipofectamine 2,000 to test their inhibition efficiency. RESULTS: siRNAs corresponding to part of the hepatitis B virus polymerase gene (siHBVP) prepared by CFDP specifically and dramatically suppressed the virus protein expression. The HBsAg expression level was reduced to 10% that of the control by co-transfection of 60 nmol/L siHBVP in SMMC7721 cells. Dose-dependent effect on suppression of HBsAg and HBeAg expression was observed in HepG2 cells. The highest inhibition rate was kept at 70% during the six days after transfection of 7.5 nmol/L siHBVP. CONCLUSION: We show CFDP is a very promising method to prepare therapeutic agents in anti-virus applications.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed2004

[Analysis of partial sequence of the gene for a novel Br protein].

A strain of halophilic archaeum AB1 was isolated and purified from Aibi Lake located in the north of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Partial DNA fragment encoding a bacteriorhodopsin (Br) protein as well as 16S rRNA of AB1 was amplified by PCR, and their nucleotide sequences were determined subsequently. On the basis of homology and phylognetic analysis about 16S rRNA gene (16S rDNA), it could be speculated that the strain AB1 is a novel member of the genus Natronococcus. The hydropathy analysis of Br fragment revealed that the AB1 Br had a transmembrane heptahelical structure similar to that of other Brs. On the other hand, homology alignment using the deduced partial amino acid sequence of Br protein of AB1 with other Br proteins showed that AB1 Br protein is obviously different to others. These facts indicated that the Br in halophilic archaeum AB1 is a new Br protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

Codon usage decreases the error minimization within the genetic code.

The genetic code is not random but instead is organized in such a way that single nucleotide substitutions are more likely to result in changes between similar amino acids. This fidelity, or error minimization, has been proposed to be an adaptation within the genetic code. Many models have been proposed to measure this adaptation within the genetic code. However, we find that none of these consider codon usage differences between species. Furthermore, use of different indices of amino acid physicochemical characteristics leads to different estimations of this adaptation within the code. In this study, we try to establish a more accurate model to address this problem. In our model, a weighting scheme is established for mistranslation biases of the three different codon positions, transition/transversion biases, and codon usage. Different indices of amino acids' physicochemical characteristics are also considered. In contrast to pervious work, our results show that the natural genetic code is not fully optimized for error minimization. The genetic code, therefore, is not the most optimized one for error minimization, but one that balances between flexibility and fidelity for different species.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

PubMed2003

Co-expression of five genes in E coli for L-phenylalanine in Brevibacterium flavum.

AIM: To study the effect of co-expression of ppsA, pckA, aroG, pheA and tyrB genes on the production of L-phenylalanine, and to construct a genetic engineering strain for L-phenylalanine. METHODS: ppsA and pckA genes were amplified from genomic DNA of E. coli by polymerase chain reaction, and then introduced into shuttle vectors between E coli and Brevibacterium flavum to generate constructs pJN2 and pJN5. pJN2 was generated by inserting ppsA and pckA genes into vector pCZ; whereas pJN5 was obtained by introducing ppsA and pckA genes into pCZ-GAB, which was originally constructed for co-expression of aroG, pheA and tyrB genes. The recombinant plasmids were then introduced into B. flavum by electroporation and the transformants were used for L-phenylalanine fermentation. RESULTS: Compared with the original B. flavum cells, all the transformants were showed to have increased five enzyme activities specifically, and have enhanced L-phenylalanine biosynthesis ability variably. pJN5 transformant was observed to have the highest elevation of L-phenylalanine production by a 3.4-fold. Co-expression of ppsA and pckA increased activity of DAHP synthetase significantly. CONCLUSION: Co-expression of ppsA and pckA genes in B. flavum could remarkably increase the expression of DAHP synthetase; Co-expression of ppsA, pckA, aroG, pheA and tyrB of E. coli in B. flavum was a feasible approach to construct a strain for phenylalanine production.

Brevibacterium↗

PubMed2003

Expression of recombinant human ICOS and in vitro characterization of its bioactivity on B lymphocytes.

Inducible costimulator (ICOS) is a novel costimulatory molecule expressed in activated T cell and has critical regulation effect on special immune response. In this study, the cDNA encoding human ICOS was cloned from activated tonsil cells via RT-PCR, and was expressed in E. coli on pET28 expression vector. The recombinant ICOS protein expressed from E. coli showed a molecular weight of 14 kD on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and was further confirmed by Western blot. In presence of IL-10, the purified rhICOS significantly increased in vitro B cell growth stimulated by pokeweed mitogen (PWM), and enhanced the secretion of IgG from B cells.

Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte↗

PubMed2002

[Determination of the D- and L-configurations of amino deoxy sugars by (S)-TBMB carboxylic acid, a fluorescent chiral derivatization reagent].

D- and L- amino sugars were coupled with (S)-TBMB (S)-TBMB = (S)-2-tert-butyl-2-methyl-1, 3-benzodioxole carbonyl chloride, a fluorescent chiral reagent, followed by per-O-acetylation. The reactions yielded diastereomeric per-O-acetylated N-(S)-TBMB carbonyl amino sugars. Their (1)HNMR signals, especially the strong singlet peaks of tert-Bu and Me groups were diagnostic for the determination of the D-, L- configurations of amino sugar. Furthermore, a simple and highly sensitive method for the determination of the D-, L- configuration of amino deoxy sugars was developed based on the same fluorescent labeling method and reverse phase HPLC. The total time in analysis is less than two hours and the detection limit of the method is 0.2 picomolar.

Amino Sugars↗

PubMed2002

Purification and characterization of a novel chitinase from Bacillus brevis.

An extracellular chitinase secreted by Bacillus brevis was purified to homogeneity by a combination of ammonium sulfate precipitation, Phenyl-Sepharose hydrophobic-interaction chromatography and DEAE anion-exchange chromatography. On SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis, the purified enzyme showed a mass of 85 kD even in the presence of beta mercaptoethanol, but shifted to 48 kD when heated in boiling water or treated with 8 mol/L urea at 50 degrees for 10 min. The depolymerization of subunits was accompanied with the loss of chitinase activity, and removing denaturing factors by dialysis could restore the dimer structure and enzymatic activity. The enzyme had an isoelectric point of 5.5 and an optimal temperature of 60 degrees, and was most active at pH 8.0. The enzymatic activity was stable at pH 6-10, and inhibited by Ag(+). Ten N-terminal amino acids were determined to be AVSNSKIIGY, demonstrating that the purified enzyme was a novel one. The hydrolysis pattern of the purified enzyme indicated that the chitinase was an endochitinase. The extraordinary thermo-stability and high resistance to proteolysis provide the enzyme with a good prospect to be used as a new tool for biocontrol.

Bacillus↗

PubMed2002

Increasing bioactivity of Flt3 ligand by fusing two identical soluble domains.

Flt3 ligand (FL) is a hematopoietic growth factor, initiating its in tracellular signaling cascade by binding to counterpart receptor and driving receptor dimerization. The native form of soluble FL in vivo is mainly monomeric. In this study, we constructed a rFL-FL fusion protein cDNA by linking two copies of cDNA encoding the soluble domain of FL in tandem and expressed it in Pichia pastoris. On SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the rFL-FL fusion protein showed a molecular weight of 43 kD, agreeing well with the predicted value. The 43 kD protein was further confirmed by Western blot using polyclonal rabbit anti-human FL antibody. The rFL-FL fusion protein exhibited about 10-fold increment in its activity on colony formation of bone marrow progenitor cells. RFL-FL fusion protein also exerted more potent effect than monomeric FL on extending the survival of starving Raji cells.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Expression of Human Soluble CD40 Ligand in Pichia pastoris and Its Effects on Dendritic Cells and Malignant B Cells.

CD40 ligand (CD40L) is a member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily and is expressed primarily on the activated CD4( )T lymphocytes. The CD40 molecule, the cognate receptor of CD40L presents on many immunocytes such as B lymphocytes, dendritic cells (DCs) as well as on some neoplastic cells. Triggering of CD40 through CD40L plays a central role in the initiation and regulation of the human immune response. In order to further investigate the possible biological roles of CD40 signaling triggered by CD40L, we subcloned the DNA fragment encoding the extracellular region of human CD40L into the pSK plasmid. After being sequenced, the target fragment was introduced into the pPICZalphaA plasmid to construct the pPICZalphaA-sCD40L expressing vector which was then transduced into Pichia pastoris GS115 cells by electroporation. The tansformant expressed sCD40L in culture supernatants with a maximum yield of about 35 mg/L. Furthermore, we found that the recombinant human soluble CD40 ligand (rhsCD40L) could effectively induced human peripheral blood monocytes(PBMCs) in vitro in the absence of TNFalpha into dendritic cells (DCs) with the typical morphology and special surface markers of dendritic cells including CD1a, CD80, CD83, and HLA-DR etc. To our surprise, the rhsCD40L also could inhibit directly in vitro proliferation of the CD40-positive multiple myeloma cell line XG-2 and the B lymphoma cell line Daudi significantly at an optimal concentration from 2.5 to 15.0 mg/L, while CD40 negative ovarian carcinoma cell lines, SKB and SKR, were not effected by either high or low concentration of rhsCD40L. Moreover, rhsCD40L had the same effects as CD40L-transfected cell in inducing XG2 cell apoptosis. Our results demonstrated that functional human soluble CD40L could be successfully expressed in the Pichia pastoris system and that the recombinant human soluble CD40L might be a potential immune adjuvant and a new powerful molecule for tumor bio-therapy.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Effect of F209S Mutation of Escherichia coli AroG on Resistance to Phenylalanine Feedback Inhibition.

In Escherichia coli, 80% of the 3-deoxy-D-arabino-heptulosonate 7-phosphate(DAHP) synthase was encoded by aroG gene. The aroG gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) from strain K-12 and a mutant strain resistant to phenylalanine analogues. The PCR products were cloned and subject to DNA sequence analysis. A single base mutation of Tright curved arrow C was detected at nucleotide 625, which causes a substitution of Phe(209) by Ser in the gene product. The gene was expressed on pTrc99A in E.coli strain JM105. Under the induction of IPTG, distinct band with the expected molecule weight was detected on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and the specific activity of DAHP of the crude extract of the transformed cells increased by 1.8-fold. Enzyme activity inhibition analysis revealed the high resistance of mutant AroG to feedback inhibition by phenylalanine. JM105 cells harboring with mutant aroG gene showed were able to grow on medium containing higher concentration of analogues than that carrying normal aroG gene. Discussion was focused on the varieties of mutations contributing to desensitization of feedback inhibition.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Expression of Human Flt3 Ligand in Pichia pastoris and Its Biological Characteristics.

Flt3 ligand(FL) is a cytokine that stimulates the proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells/progenitors. In order to obtain high level of recombinant human soluble FL(rhFL) production, an artificial gene for rhFL was synthesized by using favored genetic codons of the yeast Pichia pastoris. Then the gene was cloned into the vector pPICzalphaA and the resulting construct was introduced into Pichia pastoris for expression. It was found that it was possible to obtain biologically active rhFL with a yield of over 30 mg/L of yeast culture. The rhFL stimulated colony formation from cord blood. rhFL, SCF, GM-CSF and IL-3 are the most promising combination for the in vitro expansion of stem/progenitor cells. It was also showed that rhFL increased the induction of dendritic cells from cord blood in combination with GM-CSF, TNFalpha and IL-4. Interestingly, rhFL stimulated the growth of an endothelial cell line this effect has not been reported before.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1999

Purification and Characterization of an Alkaline Lipase from Penicillium cyclopium PG37.

An extracellular, novel alkaline lipase produced by Penicillium cyclopium PG37 was purified by centrifugation, ammonium sulfate precipitation, and phenyl-Sepharose CL-4B, DEAE Sepharose fast flow and Sephadex G-75 column chromatographies. A 16.5-fold purification of the enzyme was achieved which had a specific activity of 5 200 u/mg protein, and the recovery of the activity was 33.2%. The purified enzyme exhibited a single band on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The molecular weight of the native lipase was estimated to be about 29 kD by gel filtration using Sephadex G-150, and that of the denatured lipase was determined to be about 27.5 kD by its mobility on SDS-PAGE, indicating that the lipase was a monomer. The N-terminal amino acid sequence was determined with automatic protein sequencer to be ATADAAAFPD, which has no homology with other sequences of known lipases. The optimum temperature of the action of this enzyme was 25 degrees and the lipase was stable below 30 degrees, but only 30% of its activity remained after 20 min incubation at 40 degrees. The enzyme was stable at pH from 6.5 to 10.5, and its optimal pH for activity is 10.0. Low concentration of alkaline proteinase has little effect on the lipase PG37, therefore these two enzymes can be used as ingredients that are added to commercial detergents simultaneously.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1998

Cloning and Expression of aroG Gene of E. coli and Its Co-expression with pheA and tyrB Genes.

3-Deoxy-D-arabino-heptulonate-7-phosphate synthetase (DAHP) is one of the key enzymes in phenylalanine biosynthesis pathway. In E. coli, DAHP is encoded by aroG Gene. In this work, aroG was cloned from an E. coli mutant strain resistant to m-fluro-L-phenylalanine (mPF) and p-fluro-L-phenylalanine (pPF) by PCR. The gene was expressed under the control of lambda phage promoter p(R) in P2392 strain of E. coli. Distinct band was detected as the product of aroG on SDS-PAGE. The specific activity in crude extract of DAHP was raised to 1.7-fold. Based on the cloning and expression of pheA (encoding both chorsmate mutase CM and prephenate dehydratase PD) and tyrB (encoding phenylalanine aminotransferase PAT) genes, aroG, pheA and tyrB genes were constructed and expressed in P2392. The results showed that the specific activities of DAPH, CM/PD and PAT in crude extracts were increased by 1.7, 13.9/7.8 and 2.3-fold, respectively.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1997

The Isolation and Purification of Archaerhodopsin from Halobacterium sp. XZ515.

The claret membrane, instead of the purple membrane, was isolated when the conventional method for isolating purple membrane from Halobacterium halobium was applied to Halobacterium sp. XZ515. The SDS-PAGE results showed that only one protein, archaerhodopsin, existed in claret membrane with M. W. similar to BR. The method for isolating and purifying the archaerhodopsin, an intrinsic membrane protein, by detergent dissolution and hydrophobic chromatography on the column of octylsepharose, was also introduced. The pure archaerhodopsin showed the absorption spectrum similar to BR and was able to produce the M412 photoproduct in the photocycle under illumilation. It was concluded that this archaerhodopsin was a BR-like retinal protein.

Journal Article↗