Chromosome-scale genome assembly of Rhododendron molle provides insights into its evolution and terpenoid biosynthesis.

BACKGROUND: Rhododendron molle (Ericaceae) is a traditional Chinese medicine, which has been used to treat rheumatism and relieve pain since ancient times. The characteristic grayanoids of this plant have been demonstrated to be the chemical basis for the analgesic activity. Moreover, unlike morphine, these diterpenoids are non-addictive. Grayanoids mainly distribute in the leaves, flowers, roots, and fruits of R. molle, with low content. Currently the research on the biosynthesis of grayanoids is hindered, partially due to lack of the genomic information. RESULTS: In the present study, a total of 744 Mb sequences were generated and assembled into 13 chromosomes. An ancient whole-genome duplication event (Ad-ß) was discovered that occurred around 70 million years ago. Tandem and segmental gene duplications led to specific gene expansions in the terpene synthase and cytochrome P450 (CYP450) gene families. Two diterpene synthases were demonstrated to be responsible for the biosynthesis of 16α-hydroxy-ent-kaurane, the key precursor for grayanoids. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a species-specific bloom of the CYP71AU subfamily, which may involve the candidate CYP450s responsible for the biosynthesis of grayanoids. Additionally, three putative terpene biosynthetic gene clusters were found. CONCLUSIONS: We reported the first genome assembly of R. molle and investigated the molecular basis underpinning terpenoids biosynthesis. Our work provides a foundation for elucidating the complete biosynthetic pathway of grayanoids and studying the terpenoids diversity in R. molle.

Immune persistence after different polio sequential immunization schedules in Chinese infants.

Trivalent oral poliovirus vaccine (tOPV) has been withdrawn and instead an inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) and bivalent type 1 and type 3 OPV (bOPV) sequential immunization schedule has been implemented since 2016, but no immune persistence data are available for this polio vaccination strategy. This study aimed to assess immune persistence following different polio sequential immunization schedules. Venous blood was collected at 24, 36, and 48 months of age from participants who had completed sequential schedules of combined IPV and OPV in phase III clinical trials. The serum neutralizing antibody titers against poliovirus were determined, and the poliovirus-specific antibody-positive rates were evaluated. A total of 1104 participants were enrolled in this study. The positive rates of poliovirus type 1- and type 3-specific antibodies among the sequential immunization groups showed no significant difference at 24, 36, or 48 months of age. The positive rates of poliovirus type 2-specific antibody in the IPV-IPV-tOPV group at all time points were nearly 100%, which was significantly higher than the corresponding rates in other immunization groups (IPV-bOPV-bOPV and IPV-IPV-bOPV). Immunization schedules involving one or two doses of IPV followed by bOPV failed to maintain a high positive rate for poliovirus type 2-specific antibody.

[Evaluation of immune responses and related patho-inflammatory reactions of a candidate inactivated EV71 vaccine in neonatal monkeys].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety of enterovirus type 71 (EV71) inactivated vaccine (human diploid derived) for infection prevention in an animal model by investigating the immune responses and related patho-inflammatory reactions. METHODS: In the neonatal monkey model for EV71 vaccine protection, vaccinated group (n = 4) and unvaccinated group (n = 4) were attacked with live virus at the same time, the parameters of clinical observations, antibodies and inflammatory factors in peripheral blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were detected. And the pathological changes in major organs were used to determine the patho-inflammatory reactions during the immune responses elicited by vaccination. RESULTS: The neutralizing antibodies of vaccine group reach to 1:32. There was no obvious changes of inflammatory factors in peripheral blood and CSF of monkeys challenged or unchallenged by live virus. In peripheral blood of unvaccinated group, the level of basophilic granulocyte higher 4 - 5 times than normal level and the interferon-γ (IFN-γ) showed obvious increase. Live virus infected after 7 days, the interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IFN-γ in peripheral blood of unvaccinated group (18.5, 12.7 pg/ml) were higher than vaccinated group (10.2, 7.6 pg/ml). Furthermore, the IL-6 in CSF (102.0 pg/ml) had 4 - 5 times increased than vaccinated group (12.4 pg/ml) at 7 days after virus exposure. Meanwhile, the pathological analysis revealed that no obvious changes were detected in CNS and other organs of vaccinated monkeys challenged with live virus. However, the pathological damages induced by virus infection could be determined in the unvaccinated control monkeys, including neuronal damage, massive cellular infiltration associated with pulmonary edema/hemorrhage and pulmonary/bronchial damage due to an infiltration of inflammatory cells. CONCLUSION: Capable of inducing an immune response, the EV71 inactivated vaccine offers protection to neonatal rhesus monkeys against the attacks of live virus. Based on the results of no patho-inflammatory reaction and pathological damage after viral infection in vaccinated animals, the excellent safety of this vaccine may be confirmed in neonatal monkey.

SARS-CoV-2: vaccines in the pandemic era.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has caused millions of infections and deaths worldwide since its emergence in December 2019. As there is little or no natural immunity in the human population or specific anti-COVID-19 drugs, researchers from the government, academia and industry are developing vaccines at an unprecedented speed to halt the pandemic. In this review, the results of animal experiments and clinical trials on several vaccine technical platforms are summarized, and several challenges are also discussed to further promote the development, evaluation and application of vaccines during the challenging situation of the global pandemic.

Bioinspired Dielectric Film with Superior Mechanical Properties and Ultrahigh Electric Breakdown Strength Made from Aramid Nanofibers and Alumina Nanoplates.

Materials with excellent thermal stability, mechanical, and insulating properties are highly desirable for electrical equipment with high voltage and high power. However, simultaneously integrating these performance portfolios into a single material remains a great challenge. Here, we describe a new strategy to prepare composite film by combining one-dimensional (1D) rigid aramid nanofiber (ANF) with 2D alumina (Al2O3) nanoplates using the carboxylated chitosan acting as hydrogen bonding donors as well as soft interlocking agent. A biomimetic nacreous 'brick-and-mortar' structure with a 3D hydrogen bonding network is constructed in the obtained ANF/chitosan/Al2O3 composite films, which provides the composite films with exceptional mechanical and dielectric properties. The ANF/chitosan/Al2O3 composite film exhibits an ultrahigh electric breakdown strength of 320.1 kV/mm at 15 wt % Al2O3 loading, which is 50.6% higher than that of the neat ANF film. Meanwhile, a large elongation at break of 17.22% is achieved for the composite film, integrated with high tensile strength (~233 MPa), low dielectric loss (<0.02), and remarkable thermal stability. These findings shed new light on the fabrication of multifunctional insulating materials and broaden their practical applications in the field of advanced electrics and electrical devices.

[Biological characters of a coxsackievirus B3 variant strain isolated from a hand-foot-mouth disease patient with severe clinical symptoms].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the genetic and biological characters of a new isolate of coxsackievirus B3 (CoxB3), i.e. FY-19 strain, and investigate its mechanistic role in causing different clinical symptoms of hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD). METHODS: FY-19 strain, isolated from a patient with severe clinical symptoms from Fuyang, China in 2008, was identified by the serological parameters via the Lim Benyesh-Melnick (LBM) antiserum pools. Its genotype was further characterized by sequencing the whole genome. And its biological characters were also examined by proliferation kinetic and pathogenetic analysis. RESULTS: FY-19 strain was identified as CoxB3 showing 23.0%, 16.5% and 32.1% difference with Nancy strain in 3'-, 5'-noncoding and coding regions respectively. FY-19 also showed a high homology with other HFMD-related CoxB3 isolates in China. But its homology with non-HFMD-related CoxB3 isolates was lower (13.5% and 25.0% difference in 3'-NCR and coding region respectively). The viral replication kinetic analysis suggested that the FY-19 proliferation increased rapidly and peaked at 14 hours post-infection. In pathological analysis, FY-19 strain induced mortal pathology in sucking mice. CONCLUSION: Differences in genetic and biological characters exist between FY-19 and Nancy strains. Further analysis on the pathogenesis of this variant may aid in elucidating the mechanisms of HFMD.

The repairing effect of a recombinant human connective-tissue growth factor in a burn-wounded rhesus-monkey (Macaca mulatta) model.

CTGF (connective-tissue growth factor) has been characterized as an extracellular-matrix-associated protein that modulates basic-fibroblast-growth-factor signalling and angiogenesis. In the present paper, the cloning of the ctgf gene from human umbilical-vein endothelial cells and expression of the protein in Escherichia coli as an N-terminal hexahistidine fusion protein is described. Recombinant human CTGF (rhCTGF) was expressed and purified so that we could investigate its effect on the proliferation of human embryo fibroblast KMB-17 and NIH3T3 cells. The results indicated not only that the protein was properly folded, but also that it had the same specific activity and stability as the native protein. Furthermore, we administered this recombinant protein in a non-human primate [rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta)] burn-wound model and report the clinical findings and structural effects. Epitheliotrophic effects were conspicuous in wounded tissues at 10-100 ng of CTGF/cm(2), suggesting that administered rhCTGF can play a normal physiological role in wound repairing in a non-human primate model.

Structural and functional characterization of herpes simplex virus 1 immediate-early protein infected-cell protein 22.

Of the five HSV1 immediate-early proteins, infected-cell protein 22 (ICP22), the product of the Us1 gene, is a member whose function is less understood. In order to promote better understanding of the role of ICP22 in viral replication, mutation and fluorescence techniques were used to investigate the biochemical relationship between ICP22's structure and nuclear localization, and the CAT assay was used to analyze the relationship between ICP22's structure and its transcriptional repression. The results of these experiments implied (i) ICP22 is localized to small dense nuclear bodies and is paired with the SC-35 domain in the nucleus, (ii) ICP22 localization in a punctate state requires completion of the main sequence which includes the 1-320th amino acids, (iii) a conservative mutation in the nucleotidylylation site is important for its nuclear localization and transcriptional repression, and (4) despite possessing the same amino acid sequence as the ICP22 carboxyl-terminal, Us1.5 was distinct from ICP22 in location and function.

HTRP--an immediate-early gene product induced by HSV1 infection in human embryo fibroblasts, is involved in cellular co-repressors.

The interaction between virus and receptor is a process that mimics physiological ligand binding receptors and induces signal transduction. In the investigation of the interaction between HSV1 (Herpes Simplex virus 1) and human fibroblasts via virus binding to its receptor complex on cellular membranes, the HTRP (human transcription regulator protein), a protein encoded by an immediate-early gene of cellular response against the specific stimulation of HSV1 binding, was cloned from a cDNA library established from early gene response mRNA. The localization of HTRP expressed as a fusion polypeptide with a fluorescent protein in HeLa cells was confirmed to be the nucleus. The results of a yeast two-hybrid experiment indicated that HTRP is indeed involved in the interaction with the SAP (mSin3-associate polypeptide) complex via SAP30. A pull-down test and Western blotting in vitro, and immunoprecipitation in vivo also provided evidence in support of this result. The interaction of HTRP with SAP30 in its conserved domain implies that this protein family, as the products of immediate-early genes, comprise functional molecules involved in the transcriptional regulation of cells, which might be related to the inhibition of some cell survival genes.

Early Expression of Protooncogenes Induced by the Binding to Cells of Two Viruses.

The specific binding of virus to receptor is essentially the interaction of ligand and receptor. This binding is able to induce cellular primary gene response that has various regulatory function in cells. Different immediate-early gene responses could be induced with different binding virus. The different gene responses were observed as poliovirus and HSV-I bind to human diploid cells. These differences showed that early expression of protooncogenes were enhanced and/or suppressed in the primary gene responses.

[Preliminary study of immunity and safety of recombinant adenovirus expressing rotavirus structural proteins in rhesus monkeys].

OBJECTIVE: To preliminarily evaluate the immunity and safety of the recombinant adenoviruses expressing rotavirus structural proteins VP7 and VP6 in rhesus monkeys to lay a foundation for the development of novel genetic engineering vaccine against rotavirus. METHODS: Baby monkeys were immunized with the recombinant adenoviruses intranasally or orally. Serum IgG against rotavirus was measured with ELISA. During the course of the immunization, besides the daily monitoring of body temperature, weight and clinical symptoms, the routine blood and urine tests and liver and kidney function tests were also conducted. RESULTS: Monkeys immunized via intranasal or oral routes could both generate serum IgG against rotavirus. During the immunization, the temperature of monkeys was normal and body weight raise stably. Both routine blood and urine tests and liver and kidney function tests showed no significant alteration compared with the control group. CONCLUSION: The immunization with the recombinant adenoviruses expressing rotavirus antigens is able to induce rotavirus specific efficient immune responses and is safe to baby rhesus monkeys. The preliminary results implied that the recombinant adenoviruses could be an ideal vaccine for rotavirus and lay a foundation for further studies.

[Structural mechanism studies of hTNF alpha mutants in position 30 and 42 amino acid].

OBJECTIVE: To study the relationship between the structure and functional activity of hTNF alpha. METHODS: Four hTNF alpha mutants were constructed, different binding structures and gene responses related with these mutants were studied by the methods of immunoprecipitation and mRNA differential display. RESULTS: The specific activities and LD50 of the different hTNF alpha mutants indicated their different bioactivities. It was shown that the hTNF alpha mutants had the relative binding affinities to the wild types. The mRNA differential display assay proved that the hTNF alpha mutants stimulated different gene responses. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the specific anti-tumor activities of hTNF alpha mutants are accomplished by inducing different or same gene response at different quantities after its binding to specific receptor.

[Research methods in protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid interactions and application in the study of human enterovirus A71].

Methods for analyses of protein-protein interactions include: yeast two hybrid (Y2H), phage dis- play (PD), co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP), glutathione S-transferase pull-down (GST pull-down), cellular co-localization, far-western blotting, virus overlay protein binding assay (VOPBA), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). Technologies for the detection of protein-nucleic acid interactions include: yeast one hybrid (Y1H), chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA), Southwestern blotting, reporter gene, Co-IP, GST pull-down, and PD. These methods are often used in the study of the human enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) by our research team. Reviews in the Chinese literature in this field are lacking, so we reviewed applications of these methods in the study of EV-A71. This review may impart important knowledge in the research of other viruses with regard to protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid interactions.

Experimental infection of tree shrews (Tupaia belangeri) with Coxsackie virus A16.

Coxsackie virus A16 (CA16) is commonly recognized as one of the main human pathogens of hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD). The clinical manifestations of HFMD include vesicles of hand, foot and mouth in young children and severe inflammatory CNS lesions. In this study, experimentally CA16 infected tree shrews (Tupaia belangeri) were used to investigate CA16 pathogenesis. The results showed that both the body temperature and the percentages of blood neutrophilic granulocytes / monocytes of CA16 infected tree shrews increased at 4-7 days post infection. Dynamic distributions of CA16 in different tissues and stools were found at different infection stages. Moreover, the pathological changes in CNS and other organs were also observed. These findings indicate that tree shrews can be used as a viable animal model to study CA16 infection.

Pluronic P85/poly(lactic acid) vesicles as novel carrier for oral insulin delivery.

Poly(lactic acid)-b-Pluronic-b-poly(lactic acid) (PLA-P85-PLA) vesicles were developed as novel carrier for oral insulin delivery. PLA-P85-PLA block copolymer was synthesized by ring opening polymerization of the monomer l-lactide using Pluronic copolymer P85 as the initiator. Insulin-loaded PLA-P85-PLA vesicles were prepared by dialysis method and the mean diameter of insulin-loaded PLA-P85-PLA vesicles was determined to be 178 nm. The cytotoxicity studies using human ovarian cancer cells OVCAR-3 indicate that PLA-P85-PLA block copolymer has good biocompatibility. Both in vitro and in vivo release behavior of insulin loaded in PLA-P85-PLA vesicles were studied. It was observed that insulin was released out gradually from PLA-P85-PLA vesicles and almost all insulin was released out 7.5h later. More importantly, for the oral administration of insulin-loaded PLA-P85-PLA vesicles at insulin doses of 200 IU/kg, the minimum blood glucose concentration was observed in the diabetic mice test after 2.5h, which was 15% of initial glucose level. Furthermore, the blood glucose concentration increased slowly to 31.8% of initial blood glucose concentration after 10.5h and was maintained at this level for at least an additional 14h (32.5% of initial blood glucose concentration at 24.5h). These results proved that PLA-P85-PLA vesicles could be promising polymeric carriers for oral insulin delivery application due to their sustained and enhanced hypoglycemic effect.

[Complete nucleotide sequence of a human coxsackievirus A16 strain KMM08 isolated in Kunming, China in 2008].

OBJECTIVE: To describe the genetic characterization of complete genome from a human coxsackievirus A16 (CA16) strain KMM08, isolated in Yunnan, China, in 2008. METHODS: By using RT-PCR, the seven fragments contained about 1000 nucleotides in the complete genome were sequenced. The sequences were aligned with other enterovirus sequences downloaded from GenBank using Mega 4.1, RDP3 and SimPlot 3.5.1 software. RESULTS: As in other human enterovirus, its genome was 7409 nucleotides in length, encoding for 2193 amino acids. KMM08 strain was closely related to other reference strains of B genotype. In the complete genome, the homology of nucleotide and amino acid among the eleven CA16 isolated strains were 79.0% - 98.2% and 94.5% - 99.3%, respectively. The rates of homology were 79.1% and 94.8% when comparing with that of G10 strains and 78.7% and 89.0% comparing with that of BrCr strains, respectively. SZ-HK08-3 strain had high homology when compared to other strains. In different segment of genome, the rates of homology were 97.0% - 99.0% and 98.0% - 100.0% when compared with that of SZ-HK08-3 strains, respectively. The rates of homology were 74.2% - 86.9% and 90.9% - 97.0% when compared with that of G10 strains, respectively and were 65.0% - 84.9% and 71.0% - 95.2% when compared with that of BrCr strains. Data from Phylogenetic analysis showed that KMM08 belong to genotype B. The putative recombinant Tainan-5079-98 was detected positive with RDP3 and SimPlot 3.5.1. CONCLUSION: KMM08 strains isolated in Yunnan in 2008 belonged to B genotype of coxsackievirus A16. The possible occurrence of inter-typic recombination would involve EV71 and CA16.

Herpes simplex virus 1 ICP22 inhibits the transcription of viral gene promoters by binding to and blocking the recruitment of P-TEFb.

ICP22 is a multifunctional herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) immediate early protein that functions as a general repressor of a subset of cellular and viral promoters in transient expression systems. Although the exact mechanism of repression remains unclear, this protein induces a decrease in RNA polymerase II Serine 2 (RNAPII Ser-2) phosphorylation, which is critical for transcription elongation. To characterize the mechanism of transcriptional repression by ICP22, we established an in vivo transient expression reporter system. We found that ICP22 inhibits transcription of the HSV-1 α, ß and γ gene promoters. The viral tegument protein VP16, which plays vital roles in initiation of viral gene expression and viral proliferation, can overcome the inhibitory effect of ICP22 on α-gene transcription. Further immunoprecipitation studies indicated that both ICP22 and VP16 bind to positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) and form a complex with it in vivo. We extended this to show that P-TEFb regulates transcription of the viral α-gene promoters and affects transcriptional regulation of ICP22 and VP16 on the α-genes. Additionally, ChIP assays demonstrated that ICP22 blocks the recruitment of P-TEFb to the viral promoters, while VP16 reverses this blocking effect by recruiting P-TEFb to the viral α-gene promoters through recognition of the TAATGARAT motif. Taken together, our results suggest that ICP22 interacts with and blocks the recruitment of P-TEFb to viral promoter regions, which inhibits transcription of the viral gene promoters. The transactivator VP16 binds to and induces the recruitment of P-TEFb to viral α-gene promoters, which counteracts the transcriptional repression of ICP22 on α-genes by recruiting p-TEFb to the promoter region.

[Experimental studies on infant Tupaia belangeri chineses with EV71 infection].

Tupaia belangeri are small mammals with a squirrel-like appearance; they were formerly classified under the primates order despite the lack of derived features characteristic of primates. Given that T. belangeri are easy to raise, cheap to maintain, and have a small body size, a high reproductive rate, and close affinity to primates, these animals would be used as an alternative to primates in biomedical research. Three-month old T. belangeri chineses were infected with enterovirus 71 (EV71) via three different routes, namely, oral administration, nasal dripping, and tail intravenous injection, to study the infection in infant T. belangeri and find a feasible scheme to make them an ideal animal model of EV71 in place of primates. Daily activities were regularly observed, body temperatures were measured, and blood tests were conducted. Blood and fecal samples were regularly collected. The infection was examined via the neutralizing antibody test, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Real-Time PCR, and pathological analysis. The temperature, as well as the white blood cell count and the number of lymphocytes, increased four days after infection. Virus loads were determined in all three groups, and the peak appeared on, before, or after the tenth day, respectively. Thus, oral administration proved to be the best route. The highest serum antibody titer obtained was 1:16. Acute paralysis with urinary retention manifested after about two weeks, and pathological changes were observed in the brain, heart, lung, spleen, kidney, and other tissues. In conclusion, T. belangeri chineses can infected with EV71 via oral administration, nasal dripping, and tail intravenous injection. Therefore, T. belangeri are potential EV71 animal models for further studies on the mechanism of pathogenesis or vaccine evaluation.

Host cell protein C9orf69 promotes viral proliferation via interaction with HSV-1 UL25 protein.

In light of the scarcity of reports on the interaction between HSV-1 nucleocapsid protein UL25 and its host cell proteins, the purpose of this study is to use yeast two-hybrid screening to search for cellular proteins that can interact with the UL25 protein. C9orf69, a protein of unknown function was identified. The interaction between the two proteins under physiological conditions was also confirmed by biological experiments including co-localization by fluorescence and immunoprecipitation. A preliminary study of the function of C9orf69 showed that it promotes viral proliferation. Further studies showed that C9orf69 did not influence viral multiplication efficiency by transcriptional regulation of viral genes, but indirectly promoted proliferation via interaction with UL25.

Analysis of the cellular localization of herpes simplex virus 1 immediate-early protein ICP22.

Nuclear proteins often form punctiform structures, but the precise mechanism for this process is unknown. As a preliminary study, we investigated the aggregation of an HSV-1 immediate-early protein, infected-cell protein 22 (ICP22), in the nucleus by observing the localization of ICP22-EGFP fusion protein. Results showed that, in high-level expression conditions, ICP22-EGFP gradually concentrates in the nucleus, persists throughout the cell cycle without disaggregation even in the cell division phase, and is finally distributed to daughter cells. We subsequently constructed a mammalian cell expression system, which had tetracycline-dependent transcriptional regulators. Consequently, the location of ICP22-EGFP in the nucleus changed with distinct induction conditions. This suggests that the cellular location of ICP22 is also influenced by promoter regulation, in addition to its own structure. Our findings provide new clues for the investigation of transcriptional regulation of viral genes. In addition, the non-protease reporter system we constructed could be utilized to evaluate the role of internal ribosome entry sites (IRES) on transcriptional regulation.