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Fish mucus acts as a physiological and immunological barrier for maintaining normal fish physiology and conferring defense against pathogens infection. Here we report proteomic profiling of skin mucus of yellow catfish before and after E. ictaluri infection by Label-free LC-MS/MS approach. A total of 918 non-redundant proteins were identified from 54443 spectra referring to yellow catfish genome database. Further annotation via GO and KEGG database revealed complex protein composition of yellow catfish mucus. Besides structural proteins in mucus, a lot of immune-related proteins were retrieved, such as lectins, complement components, antibacterial peptides and immunoglobins. 133 differentially-expressed proteins (DEPs), including 76 up-regulated and 57 down-regulated proteins, were identified, most of which were enriched into 17 pathways centering on "immune system" category with 33 proteins involved. Consistently, significant proliferation of mucus-secreting goblet cells and CYPA-expressing cells were observed along outside of yellow catfish skin after E. ictaluri infection, indicating an enhanced immune response to E. ictaluri infection in yellow catfish skin mucus. The proteomic data provide systematic protein information to comprehensively understand the biological function of yellow catfish skin mucus in response to bacterial infection.

Fish interferon (IFN)-mediated antiviral innate immunity is the first line of defense against virus invasion. In the present study, we identify two fish IFN genes (here tentatively named IFNa and IFNc) with different-sized 3' UTRs from clone F strain of gibel carp Carassius auratus gibelio. Carp IFNa has a relatively short 3'UTR without AU-rich elements (AREs) but IFNc has a long one with 9 AREs. Functionally, carp IFNa and IFNc display significantly antiviral potential to viral infection, likely through induction of downstream IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). Both carp IFN genes are induced by viral infection, poly(I:C) treatment and IRF3/7, which are ascribed to the IFN-sensitive response elements (ISRE) within their promoters. Carp IFN genes are also induced by each other and by themselves, indicating existence of a positive feedback loop in fish IFN-mediated antiviral immune response. Comparative analyses of 3'UTR-mediated expression regulation at mRNA and protein levels show that the ARE-containing 3'UTR of carp IFNc rather than the short 3'UTR of carp IFNa promotes mRNA decay but instead results in high-level protein expression, indicating that 3'UTR of fish IFN mRNAs might be a potential factor for regulation of IFN-mediated antiviral immune response. Considering a fact that a given protein function is largely related to its protein level, these results suggest that both promoter and 3'UTR contribute to the transcription and translation of fish IFN genes, thus shaping their eventually antiviral potential.

In this paper, to identify the order-disorder structure and performance of (Gd, Sm)2(Zr, Ce)2O7 ceramic as the host matrices for immobilizing actinides, various contents of Sm/Ce co-incorporated (Gd, Sm)2(Zr, Ce)2O7 ceramics were designed and fabricated. The influences of various Sm/Ce doping contents on the order-disorder structure of the samples were investigated systematically by XRD and Raman analysis. The microstructure, elemental composition and distribution of the samples were analyzed by SEM-EDX approach. The aqueous durability of the specimens was also evaluated by a static leaching experiment. The results showed that the Gd/Zr-sites of Gd2Zr2O7 pyrochlore could be concurrently substituted by various contents of Sm/Ce. The phase structure of the as-prepared (Gd, Sm)2(Zr, Ce)2O7 ceramics were transformed from the ordered pyrochlore phase to the disordered defect-fluorite phase with decreasing the average r[(Gd, Sm)3+]/r[(Zr, Ce)4+] radius ratio after substitution. And the ceramics fabricated in this study presented high densification and excellent aqueous durability.

In mammals and fish, emerging evidence highlights that TRIM family members play important roles in the interferon (IFN) antiviral immune response. Fish TRIM family has undergone an unprecedented expansion leading to generation of finTRIM subfamily, which is exclusively specific to fish. Our recent results have shown that FTRCA1 (finTRIM C. auratus 1) is likely a fish species-specific finTRIM member in crucian carp C. auratus and acts as a negative modulator to downregulate fish IFN response by autophage-lysosomal degradation of protein kinase TBK1. In the present study, we found that FTRCA1 also impedes the activation of crucian carp IFN promoter by IRF7 but not by IRF3. Mechanistically, FTRCA1 attenuates IRF7 transcription levels likely due to enhanced decay of IRF7 mRNA, leading to reduced IRF7 protein levels and subsequently reduced fish IFN expression. E3 ligase activity is required for FTRCA1 to negatively regulate IRF7-mediated IFN response, because ligase-inactive mutants and the RING-deleted mutant of FTRCA1 lose the ability to block the activation of crucian carp IFN promoter by IRF7. These results together indicate that FTRCA1 is a multifaceted modulator to target different signaling factors for shaping fish IFN response in crucian carp.

Recent studies have related the membrane-associated RING-CH-type finger (MARCH) family proteins to host innate immune response. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) MARCH8 is reported to target SVCV glycoprotein for degradation; however, little is known about whether fish MARCH8 is involved in innate interferon (IFN) response. In this study, zebrafish march8 was significantly induced by SVCV infection. Overexpression of MARCH8 diminished fish IFN-mediated antiviral response, thus promoting the replication of SVCV and GCRV in fish cells. Mechanistically, MARCH8 interacts with and degrades MITA and TBK1 proteins to inhibit IFN response. Moreover, MARCH8 has an E3 ligase activity and enhances MITA and TBK1 polyubiquitination. Our findings reveal a mechanism whereby zebrafish MARCH8 downregulates fish IFN response and facilitates viral replication by targeting MITA and TBK1 for protein degradation.

In order to ascertain the structural relationship of zirconolite and pyrochlore for their potential application in HLW immobilization, the Gd-doped zirconolite-pyrochlore composite ceramics (Ca 1- x Zr 1- x Gd 2 x Ti 2 O 7 ) were systematically synthesized with x = 0.0–1.0 by traditional solid-phase reaction method. The phase evolution and microstructure of the as-prepared samples have been elucidated by XRD and Rietveld refinement, Raman spectroscopy, BSE-EDS and HRTEM analysis. The results showed that zirconolite-2M, zirconolite-4M, perovskite and pyrochlore, four phases were identified in Ca 1- x Zr 1- x Gd 2 x Ti 2 O 7 system and could be coexisted at x = 0.4 composition. With the increase of Gd 3+ substitution, the phase evolution was followed by zirconolite-2M→zirconolite-4M→pyrochlore. It is illustrated that the phase transformation from zirconolite-2M to zirconolite-4M was promoted by the preferential substitution of Gd 3+ for Ca 2+ . And the solubility of Gd 3+ in zirconolite-2M, zirconolite-4M and pyrochlore increased in sequence. The chemical stability test was also measured by the PCT leaching method. The normalized elemental release rates of Ca, Zr, Ti and Gd in Ca 1- x Zr 1- x Gd 2 x Ti 2 O 7 system were fairly low and in the range of 10 −6 −10 −8 g m −2 d −1 , which indicated a potential ceramics composite ensemble of CaZrTi 2 O 7 -Gd 2 Ti 2 O 7 system for nuclear HLW immobilization.

Diverse immunoglobulin (Ig) domain-containing protein (DICP) family is a novel bony fish-specific multi-gene family encoding diversified immune receptors. However, their function and the implication of binding partners remain unknown. In this study, we first identified 28 DICPs from three gibel carp gynogenetic clones and revealed their high variability and clone-specific feature. After crucian carp herpesvirus (CaHV) infection, these DICPs were significantly upregulated in head kidney, kidney and spleen. The up-regulation folds in clone A+, F and H were related to the susceptibility to CaHV, progressively increasing from resistant clone to susceptible clone. Overexpression of gibel carp DICPs inhibited interferon (IFN) and viperin promoter-driven luciferase activity. The additions of E. coli extracts and lipid A significantly enhanced the inhibition effect. In addition, gibel carp DICPs can interact with SHP-1 and SHP-2. These findings suggest that gible carp DICPs, as inhibitory receptors, might specifically recognize lipid A, and then interact with SHP-1 and SHP-2 to inhibit the induction of IFN and ISGs.

This work is a continuation of previous study of the alkali-activated slag-fly ash-metakaolin hydroceramics (ASFMH) waste form which was designed for solidifying simulated sodium-bearing waste (S-SBW). The thermal stability, resistances to gamma irradiation, freeze–thaw, and water immersion of ASFMH waste form were investigated systematically. The thermal stability results showed that the physical appearance of ASFMH waste forms was intact and without external cracking after calcination at 300, 500, 800 and 1000 °C. Importantly, the main crystalline phase of ASFMH waste form is still analcime after being calcined at 500 °C. The irradiation results indicated that the strong gamma irradiation could not induce the lattice damage of crystalline phases. The durability tests suggested that the compressive strength loss of ASFMH waste forms was 5.07, 19.04 and 10.51% after 500 kGy doses of gamma irradiation, 5 freeze–thaw cycles and 90 days of water immersion, respectively. It is suggested that ASFMH waste form designed for immobilizing S-SBW shows superior basic properties.

In mammals, tripartite motif (TRIM)-containing proteins are involved in interferon (IFN)-mediated antiviral response as pivotal players endowed with antiviral effects and modulatory capacity. Teleost fish have a unique subfamily of TRIM, called finTRIM (fish novel TRIM, FTR) generated by genus- or species-specific duplication of TRIM genes. Herein, four TRIM genes are identified from Epithelioma papulosum cyprini (EPC) cells, and phylogenetically close to the members of finTRIM, thus named FTREPC1, FTREPC2, FTREPC3 and FTREPC4. Despite high similarity in nucleotide sequence, FTREPC1/2 genes encode two proteins with a typically consecutive tripartite motif followed by a C-terminal B30.2 domain, while FTREPC3/4-encoding proteins retain only a RING domain due to early termination of translation. They are induced by poly(I:C), GCRV and SVCV as IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs), and this induction is severely impaired by blockade of STAT1 pathway and is dependent on a typical ISRE motif within the 5' untranslated regions (5'UTRs) of FTREPC1/2/3/4 genes. Whereas overexpression of FTREPC1/2/3/4 alone does not activate fish IFN promoters, overexpression of FTREPC1 or FTREPC2, rather than FTREPC3 and FTREPC4, significantly impairs intracellular poly(I:C)-triggered activation of fish IFN promoters. Consistently, FTREPC1/2 promote virus replication through negatively regulating IFN response. Our results provide evidence for the involvement of EPC finTRIM proteins in IFN antiviral response and insights into genus- or species-specific regulation of fish innate immune pathways.

Delay discounting is the decrease in subjective value of a reward as the interval of receiving it is increased. Previous studies have found inconsistent results on the relationship between age and delay discounting, and few studies have been conducted using Chinese participants. The current study aimed to clarify this relationship using a relatively large sample of Chinese adults with a wide age range (viz., 18 to 86 years old). A total of 1288 individuals completed the Monetary Choice Questionnaire. Results showed that the rate of delay discounting increased with age across adulthood, with younger participants (18-30 years) discounting less than both middle-aged participants (31-60 years) and older participants (over 60 years); and middle-aged participants discounting less than older participants. Furthermore, when the reward magnitude was large, participants were more likely to wait for delayed rewards. The increase in delay discounting rate from middle-aged adults to older adults might be explained by the life-cycle theory. The increase in delay discounting rate from young adults to middle-aged adults may reflect that young adults expect much time and a variety of future positive life events in the rest of their lives. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mammalian mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein (MAVS) is an essential adapter involved in retinoic acid-inducible gene-I (RIG-I)-like receptor (RLR)-triggered interferon (IFN) antiviral immunity. Fish MAVS homologues have been identified in several fish species; however, the signaling pathway involving fish MAVS-mediated IFN response remains to be investigated. In the present study, we report identification of a fish MAVS orthologue from crucian carp Carassius auratus blastulae embryonic (CAB) cells and its function role in fish RLR signaling. Crucian carp MAVS is constitutively expressed in CAB cells and is not transcriptionally induced by cytosolic poly (I:C) and IFN. Overexpression of crucian carp MAVS results in activation of fish IFN promoter and ISRE-containing promoter as well as transcriptional expression of IFN and ISGs including PKR and Mx1, which is impaired by functional blockade of signaling molecules TBK1 and IRF3/7. Either cytosolic poly (I:C)-induced or RIG-I-induced IFN response is attenuated by functional blockade of crucian carp MAVS. These results together indicate that fish MAVS contributes to IFN antiviral immunity downstream of cytosolic poly (I:C) and RIG-I and upstream of TBK1 and IRF3/7. Moreover, we provide evidence that apart from crucian carp MAVS, crucian carp MITA is also involved in cytosolic poly (I:C)- and RIG-I-induced IFN response.

Mammalian viperin is a typical interferon (IFN)-induced antiviral protein. Fish have viperin homologs; however, little is known about the expression regulation of fish viperins. In this study, we report the expression regulation and antiviral function of a fish viperin from crucian carp Carassius auratus during IFN response. Crucian carp viperin is induced at mRNA and protein levels by fish IFNs and IFN stimuli such as poly(I:C). Consistently, this gene promoter contains multiple transcription factor binding sites including IFN-stimulated response elements (ISRE) and IFN gamma activation sequences (GAS), and is activated by two types of fish IFNs and also by the intracellular and extracellular poly(I:C). Activation of crucian carp viperin promoter by the intracellular poly(I:C) is mediated by retinoic acid-inducing gene I (RIG-I)-like receptors (RLR)-triggered IFN signaling pathway, which is further verified by the findings that each signaling molecule of RLR pathway is able to induce the expression of crucian carp viperin at mRNA and protein levels. Finally, overexpression of crucian carp viperin in cultured fish cells confers significant protection against infection of grass carp reovirus (GCRV). These data suggest that similar to mammalian homologs, crucian carp viperin exerts a conserved function through RLR-triggered IFN signaling pathway.

Vertebrate interferon (IFN) response defenses against viral infection through the induction of hundreds of IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). Most ISGs are conserved across vertebrates; however, little is known about the species-specific ISGs. In this study, we reported that grass carp reovirus (GCRV)-induced gene 1 (Gig1), previously screened as a virus-induced gene from UV-inactivated GCRV-infected crucian carp (Carassius auratus) blastulae embryonic (CAB) cells, was a typical fish ISG, which was significantly induced by intracellular poly(I:C) through retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I)-like receptors-triggered IFN signaling pathway. Transient or stable overexpression of Gig1 prevented GCRV replication efficiently in cultured fish cells. Strikingly, Gig1 homologs were found exclusively in fish species forming a novel gene family. These results illustrate that there exists a Gig1 gene family unique to fish species and the founding gene mediates a novel fish IFN antiviral pathway.

We previously showed that a fish interferon (IFN) regulatory factor 9 (IRF9) homologue, crucian carp Carassius auratus IRF9, displays constitutively nuclear localization and involvement in fish IFN-dependent JAK-STAT signaling; however, little is known about the expression regulation of fish IRF9. Here, we characterized the expression of zebrafish IRF9 by promoter analysis. Zebrafish IRF9 gene promoter contained several putative transcription factor binding sites, including one ISRE (IFN-stimulated response element), one GAS (IFN gamma activation sequence) and three GATEs (IFN gamma activated transcriptional element, GATE1/2/3). Further sequence analyses revealed that GAS and GATE motifs existed in all promoters of IRF9 from mammals and fishes. Luciferase assays confirmed that zebrafish IRF9 promoter could be activated by zebrafish IFN phi s and zebrafish IFN gamma 2, as well as transcription factors IRF3, IRF7, and combination of IRF9 and STAT2. Treatment of recombinant crucian carp IFN protein or overexpression of zebrafish IFN gamma 2 both led to significant increase in crucian carp IRF9 mRNA and protein in cultured fish cells. Comparison of IFN-stimulated promoter activity revealed much more significant induction of zebrafish IRF9 by zebrafish IFN gamma 2 than by zebrafish IFN phi s. Mutation analyses showed that the putative GAS and GATE3 contributed to zebrafish IFN gamma 2-triggered IRF9 expression, whereas the putative ISRE and the other two GATEs were not functional for induction of zebrafish IRF9. These results together indicated that the expression property of IRF9 might be conserved from fish to mammals and that some not yet identified mechanisms could exist in IRF9 gene transcription regulation in response to IFNs. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Background Thermotherapy has already been proved effective for the treatment of various tumors, including glioma. This study was performed to determine whether tumor necrosis factor-alpha was involved in the regulation of this biological process. Methods RT-PCR and immunocytochemistry were used to investigate the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha mRNA and heat shock factor-1 protein, respectively, in glioma cells. Radioimmunoassay was used to dynamically monitor contents of TNF-a in nutrient fluid for C6 cells after hyperthermia treatment. Crystal violet staining method was used to detect glioma invasiveness. Results The most obvious increase of heat shock factor-1 protein and tumor necrosis factor -alpha mRNA in C6 cells were observed at 30 min and 60 min after hyperthermia, respectively. In addition, the radioactivity of tumor necrosis factor-alpha in C6 cells' culture fluid also reached peak at 120 min of hyperthermia. The glioma invasiveness decreases and the concentration of tumor necrosis factor-alpha reached the maximum at 120 min of hyperthermia. Conclusion Our results showed that the hyperthermia-mediated glioma invasiveness decreases was due to accelerated release of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, which could cause the decreases of glioma invasiveness by promoting the release heat shock factor-1 from neurospongioma cells.

Mammalian interferon (IFN) regulatory factor 9 (IRF-9) has long been recognized as the DNA sequence recognition subunit of IFN-stimulated gene factor 3 (ISGF3) complex, which is critical for type I IFN to induce the expression of IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs) against viral infection. Recent studies have shown that fish IFN exerts antiviral effects by induction of a number of ISGs and also of itself; however, little is known about the role of fish IRF9 in IFN signaling. Here we identify a fish IRF9 orthologue (CaIRF9) from IFN-producing cell line, crucian carp Carassius auratus blastulae embryonic (CAB) cells. Analysis of subcellular distribution of CaIRF9-green fluorescent protein indicates that CaIRF9 is constitutively present in the nucleus, which is driven by two nuclear localization signals (NLS), one locating within DNA-binding domain (DBD) of CaIRF9 and the other immediately behind DBD, although human IRF9 contains only one NLS analogous to the former of CaIRF9. Overexpression of CaIRF9 together with CaSTAT2 not only activates ISRE-containing promoter but also upregulates the expression of fish ISGs. Strikingly, CaIRF9 together with CaSTAT2 also exhibits an ability to activate crucian carp IFN promoter, and blockade of cellular CaIRF9 attenuates IFN itself-induced activation of crucian carp IFN promoter. Taken together, these data suggest that crucian carp IFN induces the expression of ISGs and also of itself possibly by the JAK-STAT signaling pathway that is conserved from fish to mammals.

A drug delivery system based on disulfide-linked MSN-folate conjugates is fabricated via co-condensation and post-grafting methods. The premature leakage before DDSs reach the specific site is eliminated due to the covalent conjugation, which is desirable for drug delivery, especially for the delivery of those highly toxic anticancer drugs. Interestingly, the controlled release responsive to redox stimuli is tunable by using different fabrication procedure. The system fabricated with co-condensation exhibits first-order release while that with post-grafting exhibits zero-order release. The constant release rate is an especially interesting behavior that avoids peaks in the rate of drug delivery. The cumulative release data were used to fit in Korsmeyer–Peppas model to figure out the release mechanism. The exponent n = 0.22 for MF1 indicates Fick diffusion while n = 0.49 for MF2 indicates non-Fick or anomalous diffusion.

Virus-Induced interferons (IFNs) have been identified in various fish species and display antiviral activities similar to mammalian type I IFNs However apart from the mammalian IFN system the IFN signaling pathway remains largely unknown Using transient transfection and recombinant protein we are reporting in this study that a crucian carp (Carassius auratus L) IFN exhibits strong antiviral activity against grass carp hemorrhagic virus (GCHV) infection and also mediates Poly I C-Induced antiviral response which correlates with its ability to Induce a set of IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs) Strikingly overexpression of wild-type Stat1 increases the effects of IFN on both the expression of ISGs and the inhibition of virus infection whereas a dominant negative mutant of Stat1 (Stat1-Delta C) which lacks of the C-terminal transcriptional activation domain (TAD) inhibits the antiviral activity of IFN and reduces the expression of ISGs demonstrating that fish IFN induces the expression of ISGs and host antiviral response through Stat1 pathway reminiscent that of mammalian IFNs Significantly unlike mammalian type I IFNs recombinant fish IFN is able to upregulate IFN itself which is enhanced by overexpression of Stat1 but impaired by knockdown of Stat1 indicating a positive feedback loop in regulation of IFN itself These results provide strong evidence for the existence of an evolutionary conserved Stat1 pathway between fish and mammals which is indispensable for fish virus-induced IFN antiviral response (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved

This study was undertaken to identify differences in protein expression profiles between superficial bladder transitional cell carcinoma (BTCC) and normal urothelial cells. We used laser capture microdissection (LCM) to harvest purified cells, and used two-dimensional liquid chromatography (2D-LC) followed by electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) to separate and identify the peptide mixture. A total of 440/438 proteins commonly appeared in 4 paired specimens. Multi-step bioinformatic procedures were used for the analysis of identified proteins; 175/179 of the 293/287 proteins that were specific expressed in tumor/normal cells own gene ontology (GO) biological process annotation. Compared with the entire list of the international protein index (IPI), there are 52/46 GO terms exhibited as enriched and 6/10 exhibited as depleted, respectively. Significantly altered pathways between tumor and normal cells mainly include oxidative phosphorylation, focal adhesion, etc. Finally, descriptive statistics show that the shotgun proteomics strategy has practice directive significance for biomarker discovery by two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) technology.

Organisms living in water are inevitably exposed to periods of hypoxia. Environmental hypoxia has been an important stressor having manifold effects on aquatic life. Many fish species have evolved behavioral, physiological, biochemical and molecular adaptations that enable them to cope with hypoxia. However, the molecular mechanisms of hypoxia tolerance in fish, remain unknown. in this study, we used suppression subtractive hybridization to examine the differential gene expression in CAB cells (Carassius auratus blastulae embryonic cells) exposed to hypoxia for 24 h. We isolated 2100 clones and identified 211 differentially expressed genes (e-value 45%). Among the genes whose expression is modified in cells, a vast majority involved in metabolism, signal transduction, cell defense, angiogenesis, cell growth and proliferation. Twelve genes encoding for ERO1-L, p53, CPO, HO-1, MKP2, PFK-2, cystatin B, GLUT1, BTG1, TGF beta 1, PGAM1, hypothetical protein F1508, were selected and identified to be hypoxia-induced using semi-quantitive RT-PCR and real-time PCR. Among the identified genes, two open reading frames (ORFs) encoding for CaBTG1 and Cacystatin B were obtained. The deduced amino acid sequence of CaBTG1 had 94.1%, 72.8%, 72.8%, 72.8%, 68.6% identity with that of DrBTG1, HsBTG1, BtBTG1, MmBTG1 and XIBTG1. Comparison of Cacystatin B with known cystatin B, the molecules exhibited 49.5 to 76.0% identity overall. These results may provide significant information for further understanding of the adaptive mechanism by which C. auratus responds to hypoxia. (c) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cathepsin B is a lysosomal cysteine protease of the papain-like enzyme family with multiple biological functions. In this study, Paralichthys olivaceus cathepsin B (PoCatB) cDNA was isolated from flounder embryonic cells (FEC) treated with UV-inactivated grass carp hemorrhage virus (GCHV) and subsequently identified as a virally induced gene. The full length cDNA of PoCatB is 1801 bp encoding 330-amino acids. The deduced protein has high homology to all known cathepsin B proteins, containing an N-terminal signal peptide, cysteine protease active sites, the occluding loop segment and a glycosylation site, all of which are conserved in the cathepsin B family. PoCatB transcription of FEC cells could be induced by turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) rhabdovirus (SMRV), UV-inactivated SMRV, UV-inactivated GCHV, poly I:C or lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and SMRV or poly I:C was revealed to be most effective among the five inducers. In normal flounder, PoCatB mRNA was detectable in all examined tissues. Moreover, SMRV infection could result in significant upregulation of PoCatB mRNA, predominantly in spleen, head kidney, posterior kidney, intestine, gill and muscle with 18.2, 10.9, 24.7, 12, 31.5 and 18 fold increases at 72 h post-infection respectively. These results provided the first evidence for the transcriptional induction of cathepsin B in fish by virus and LPS, indicating existence of a novel function in viral defense.

Protein arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1) is currently thought as an effector to regulate interferon (IFN) signalling. Here Paralichthys olivaceus PRMT1 (PoPRMT1) gene was identified as a virally induced gene from UV-inactivated Scophthalmus maximus Rhabdovirus (SMRV)-infected flounder embryonic cells (FEC). PoPMRT1 encodes a 341-amino-acid protein that shares the conserved domains including post-I, motif I, II and III. Homology comparisons show that the putative PoPMRT1 protein is the closest to zebrafish PMRT1 and belongs to type I PRMT family (including PRMT1, PRMT2, PRMT3, PRMT4, PRMT6, PRMT8). Expression analyses revealed an extensive distribution of PoPMRT1 in all tested tissues of flounder. In vitro induction of PoPRMT1 was determined in UV-inactivated SMRV-infected FEC cells, and under the same conditions, flounder Mx was also transcriptionally up-regulated, indicating that an IFN response might be triggered. Additionally, live SMRV infection of flounders induced an increased expression of PoPRMT1 mRNA and protein significantly in spleen, and to a lesser extent in head kidney and intestine. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed a major cyptoplasmic distribution of PoPRMT1 in normal FEC but an obvious increase occurred in nucleus in response to UV-inactivated SMRV. This is the first report on in vitro and in vivo expression of fish PRMT1 by virus infection, suggesting that PoPRMT1 might be implicated in flounder antiviral immune response.

In this paper, improving transition temperature of MgB 2 superconducting thin films on single crystal Si(1 1 1) substrates without a buffer layer was reported. MgB 2 thin films were prepared by e-beam evaporation and two-step in situ annealing procedures. The resistance measurements showed that the critical temperature ( T c ) was higher than 30 K on MgB 2 thin films annealed for 30 min above 600 °C and could be enhanced slowly with annealing temperature increasing. For the MgB 2 thin film annealed at 800 °C × 30 min, a critical transition temperature ( T c , at 50% onset resistance) of 33.6 K with a zero-resistance temperature ( T c0 ) of 32.8 K was obtained. The critical current density ( J c ) was measured to 3.3 × 10 5 A/cm 2 at 10 K and zero magnetic field.

The heme-regulated initiation factor 2 alpha kinase (HRI) is acknowledged to play an important role in translational shutoff in reticulocytes in response to various cellular stresses. In this study, we report its homologous cDNA cloning and characterization from cultured flounder embryonic cells (FEC) after treatment with UV-inactivated grass carp haemorrhagic virus (GCHV). The full-length cDNA of Paralichthys olivaceus HRI homologue (PoHRI) has 2391 bp and encodes a protein of 651 amino acids. The putative PoHRI protein exhibits high identity with all members of eIF2 alpha kinase family. It contains 12 catalytic subdomains located within the C-terminus of all Ser/Thr protein kinases, a unique kinase insertion of 136 amino acids between subdomains IV and V, and a relatively conserved N-terminal domain (NTD). Upon heat shock, virus infection or Poly PC treatment, PoHRI mRNA and protein are significantly upregulated in FEC cells but show different expression patterns in response to different stresses. In healthy flounders, PoHRI displays a wide tissue distribution at both the mRNA and protein levels. These results indicate that PoHRI is a ubiquitous eIF2a kinase and might play an important role in translational control over nonheme producing FEC cells under different stresses. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The double-stranded-RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR) is an important component in an antiviral defence pathway that is mediated by interferon (IFN) in vertebrates. Previously, some important IFN system genes had been identified from an IFN-producing CAB (crucian carp Carassius auratus blastulae embryonic) cells after treatment with UV-inactivated GCHV (grass carp haemorrhage virus). Here, a fish PKR-like gene, named CaPKR-like, is cloned and sequenced from the same virally infected CAB cells. It has 2192 base pairs in length with a largest open reading frame (ORF) encoding a protein of 513 amino acid residues. BLAST search reveals that the putative CaPKR-like protein is most homologous to human PKR and also has a high-level homology with all members of a family of eIF2alpha kinases. Structurally, CaPKR-like possesses a conserved C-terminal catalytic domain of eIF2alpha kinase family and the most similarity to mammalian PKRs. Within its N-terminus, there are no dsRNA-binding domains conserved in mammalian PKRs instead of two putative Z-DNA binding domains (Zalpha). Like mammalian PKRs, CaPKR-like had a very low level of constitutive expression in normal CAB cells but was up-regulated in response to active GCHV, UV-inactivated GCHV and CAB IFN, implying that the transcriptional activation of CaPKR-like by viral infection is mediated possibly by newly produced CAB IFN, which was further supported by using cycloheximide, a potent inhibitor of protein synthesis. The results together suggested that CaPKR-like was the first identified fish gene most similar to mammalian PKRs. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Type I interferon (IFN) exerts its pleiotropic effects mainly through the JAK-STAT signaling pathway, which is presently best described in mammals. By subtractive suppression hybridization, two fish signaling factors, JAK1 and STAT1, had been identified in the IFN-induced crucian carp Carassius auratus L. blastulae embryonic (CAB) cells after treatment with UV-inactivated grass carp hemorrhagic virus (GCHV). Further, the full-length cDNA of STAT1, termed CaSTAT1, was obtained. It contains 2926 bp and encodes a protein of 718 aa. CaSTAT1 is most similar to rat STAT1 with 59% identity overall and displays all highly conserved domains that the STAT family possesses. Like human STAT1beta, it lacks the C-terminus acting as transcriptional activation domain in mammals. By contrast, only a single transcript was detected in virus-induced CAB cells. Expression analysis showed that CaSTAT1 could be activated by stimulation of CAB cells with poly I:C, active GCHV, UV-inactivated GCHV or CAB IFN, and displayed diverse expression patterns similar to that of mammalian STATI. Additionally, the expression of an antiviral gene CaMx1 was also induced under the same conditions, and expression difference between CaSTAT1 and CaMx1 was revealed by induction of CAB IFN. These results provide molecular evidence supporting the notion that the fish IFN signaling transduction pathway is similar to that in mammals. Fish IFN exerts its multiple functions, at least antiviral action, through a JAK-STAT pathway. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

We study, using a finite-different method, single vortex structure of a s+id-wave superconductor by solving a time-dependent Ginzburg–Landau (TDGL) model for high-Tc superconductors. We find that, below a phase transition temperature, the order parameters indicate twofold symmetry, whereas a fourfold symmetry appears beyond the temperature. We have also investigated the effects of thermal fluctuations on the pairing symmetry while existing an additive noise or a multiplicative noise in the TDGL models. The regular vortex pattern will be distorted and disordered steadily as the noise level increases. And, it becomes no longer recognizable as a sufficiently high magnitude of noise exists.

Interferon (IFN) can induce an antiviral state via interferon-regulatory transcription factors (IRFs), which bind to and control genes directed by the interferon-stimulated response element (ISRE). Here we describe a fish IRF, termed CaIRF7, cloned from a subtractive cDNA library which is constructed with mRNAs obtained from crucian carp (Carassius auratus L.) blastulae embryonic (CAB) cells infected by UV-inactivated GCHV and mock-infected cells. CaIRF7 cDNA was found to be 1816 bp in length, with a 42 bp 5'UTR and a 508 bp 3'UTR. The open reading frame translates into 421 amino acids in which a DNA-binding domain (DBD) containing the repeated tryptophan motif and IRFs association domain have been identified. Like chicken GgIRF3, CaIRF7 was most similar to mammalian IRF7 with 27 to 30% identity overall and some 37% identity in their DBDs. A single transcript of 1.9 kb was detected in virally induced CAB cells by virtual Northern blotting. RT-PCR analysis revealed a wide tissue distribution of CaIRF7 constitutive expression, with detectable transcript in non-infected CAB cells and various tissues of healthy crucian carp. In addition, CaIRF7 expression was differentially increased by stimulation of the CAB cells with active GCHV, UV-inactivated GCHV or CAB IFN, indicating that the activation of CaIRF7 was directly regulated by IFN.

Hall coefficients and resistivities have been measured on oxygendashannealed Bi2.2Sr1.8CaCu2O8+y single crystals under hydrostatic pressure up to 1.6 GPa and the results are compared with those on as-grown and iodine-intercalated ones. Under pressure, the Hall coefficient of the oxygendashannealed crystal decreases and the pressure derivative of the Hall coefficient is −0.12 × 10−3cm3C−1GPa−1. The variation of Tc, contrary to the iodine-intercalated crystal, shows a linear increase at the rate of dTc/dP = 2.3 K GPa−1, whereas the Hall coefficient at ambient pressure is 2.15 × 10−3 cm3C−1, very close to the value of the iodine-intercalated one. The positive behavior of dTc/dP is an indication that the hole concentration in the CuO2 layers is located at the underdoped region and holes derived from extra oxygen are probable in other layers, e.g., Bi2O2 layers. The resistivities along the c-axis direction are semiconductor-like, indicating the holes from extra oxygen are two-dimensional.

Diuridine 3',5-boranophosphate has been synthesized. its diastereomerswere separated and their configuration was tentatively assingned basedon the snake venom phosphodiesterase catalytic hydrolysis

A detailed study on the reactions of several ketones with methyl methacrylate in the presence of lithium hexamethyldisilamide has been reported.