De novo RNA synthesis and homology modeling of the classical swine fever virus RNA polymerase

Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) non-structural protein 5B (NS5B) encodes an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), a key enzyme which initiates RNA replication by a de novo mechanism without a primer and is a potential target for anti-virus therapy. We expressed the NS5B protein in Escherichia coli. The rGTP can stimulate de novo initiation of RNA synthesis and mutation of the GDD motif to Gly-Asp-Asp (GAA) abolishes the RNA synthesis. To better understand the mechanism of viral RNA synthesis in CSFV, a three-dimensional model was built by homology modeling based on the alignment with several virus RdRps. The model contains 605 residues folded in the characteristic fingers, palm and thumb domains. The fingers domain contains an N-terminal region that plays an important role in conformational change. We propose that the experimentally observed promotion of polymerase efficiency by rGTP is probably due to the conformational changes of the polymerase caused by binding the rGTP. Mutation of the GDD to GAA interferes with the interaction between the residues at the polymerase active site and metal ions, and thus renders the polymerase inactive. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Identification, cloning, and characterization of microsatellite DNA in Euglena gracilis

Microsatellite DNA has been developed into one of the most popular genetic markers. We have identified and cloned microsatellite loci in the genome of a free-living protozoan Euglena gracilis FACHB-848, using the random amplified microsatellites method (RAMS). The digoxigenin-labelled oligonucleotides(CT)(10) and (GT)(10) served as probes to detect complementary sequences in the randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprints produced by means of Southern blotting. Subsequently, positive RAPD fragments were cloned. From a total of 31 RAPD primer profiles, eight microsatellite loci of E. gracilis were detected and characterized. Further, six sites (i.e. EGMS1, EGMS3, EGMS4, EGMS5, EGMS6, and EGMS7) showed polymorphisms. We found a GT or CT microsatellite every 10.5 kb in the genome of E. gracilis, and similar to animal genomes, the (GT)(n) motif was much more abundant than the (CT)(n) motif. These polymorphic microsatellite DNA will serve as advantageous molecular markers for studying the genetic diversity and molecular ecology of Euglena.

Complex mutation at a microsatellite locus in sturgeons: Acipenser sinensis, A-schrenckii, A-gueldenstaedtii and A-baerii

Cross-species amplifications of microsatellite locus Spl-106, which was originally screened from the genome of shovelnose sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus platorynchus) with a perfect TAGA repeat motif, were carried out in four other species of the genera Acipenser. A total of 34 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products representing 16 different alleles of this locus was sequenced. Sequence analysis results showed that besides the number changes of repeat units, many mutational events, such as single-base substitutions and various insertion/deletion (indels) occurred not only at species level but also at individual level, even among the different alleles within the same individual. The repeat motifs varied from perfect (TAGA)n array to perfect compound (TAAA)m (GAAA)n and perfect or imperfect compound (TAAA)m (TAGA)n (TAAA)x arrays in different species and different individuals. The evolution dynamics of this locus in sturgeons was inferred in that it may evolve from a single perfect to different perfect or imperfect compounds.

Characterization of two membrane-associated protease genes obtained from screening out-membrane protein genes of Flavobacterium columnare G(4)

In order to identify genes encoding the outer membrane proteins (OMPs) of the myxobacter Flavobacterium columnare G(4), the expression library of the bacterium was screened by using rabbit antisera developed against its OMPs. Positive colonies of Escherichia coli M15 containing fragments encoding the bacterial OMPs were selected for cloning the relevant genes by genomic walking methods. Two genes encoding a membrane-associated zinc metalloprotease and prolyl oligopeptidase are reported in this paper. The membrane-associated zinc metalloprotease gene (map) is 1800 bp in length, coding for 449 amino acids (aa). Despite the presence of a conserved motif HEXXH for all metalloproteases, the special HEXXH similar to 32 aa similar to E motif of the F. columnare G(4) Map and its low level of identity with other reported zinc-containing metalloproteases may imply that the membrane-associated zinc metalloprotease of F. columnare G(4) represents a new family of zincins. The gene encoding prolyl oligopeptidase (Pop), a serine proteinase, is 2352 bp in length, coding for 649 aa. Sequence homology analysis revealed that the Pop is also novel as it has <50% identity with other reported prolyl oligopeptidase family proteins. The present study represents the first to employ anti-fish bacterial OMP sera to screen genes of membrane-associated proteases of fish pathogenic bacteria, and to provide necessary information for the examination of the role of the two genes in the infection and pathogenesis of F. columnare.

Differential expression of two Carassius auratus Mx genes in cultured CAB cells induced by grass carp hemorrhage virus and interferon

UV-inactivated GCHV (grass carp hemorrhage virus) is able to induce an antiviral state in cultured CAB cells (crucian carp Carassius auratus blastulae embryonic cells) via the production of interferon (IFN). In the current work, the full-length cDNAs of two Mx genes, termed CaMx1 and CaMx2, have been cloned and sequenced from UV-inactivated GCHV-infected and still IFN-producing CAB cells by suppression subtractive hybridization. Their putative proteins show the characteristically structural features of mammalian IFN-induced Mx proteins, including GTP-binding motif, dynamin family signature and leucine zipper motif. CaMx1 exhibits 85% sequence identity to zebrafish MxA and 72-74% to three Atlantic salmon Mx proteins. CaMx2 is most similar to zebrafish MxE, with 80% identity, and then rainbow trout Mx3, with 52%. Constitutive expression was detected by RT-PCR for CaMx1, but not for CaMx2, in normal CAB cells, but their up-regulations could be induced after treatment with active GCHV, UV-inactivated GCHV and CAB IFN. Distinct kinetics of expression was observed for either CaMx1 or CaMx2 corresponding to the three stimuli, and even between CaMx1 and CaMx2, corresponding to the same stimulus. Upon virus infection, the transcriptional induction was strongly blocked for CaMx2 by cycloheximide (CHX), whereas almost nothing was observed for CaMx1. By contrast, following treatment with CAB IFN, CHX did not inhibit either gene transcription. Collectively, these results suggest that there are very distinct mechanisms for modulating the expression of both CaMx1 and CaMx2 in normal and GCHV-infected CAB cells.

Molecular cloning and characterization of crucian carp (Carassius auratus L.) interferon regulatory factor 7

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. (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Structure-function analysis of the inverted terminal repeats of the Sleeping Beauty transposon

Translocation of Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposon requires specific binding of SB transposase to inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) of about 230 bp at each end of the transposon, which is followed by a cut-and-paste transfer of the transposon into a target DNA sequence. The ITRs contain two imperfect direct repeats (DRs) of about 32 bp. The outer DRs are at the extreme ends of the transposon whereas the inner DRs are located inside the transposon, 165-166 bp from the outer DRs. Here we investigated the roles of the DR elements in transposition. Although there is a core transposase-binding sequence common to all of the DRs, additional adjacent sequences are required for transposition and these sequences vary in the different DRs. As a result, SB transposase binds less tightly to the outer DRs than to the inner DRs. Two DRs are required in each ITR for transposition but they are not interchangeable for efficient transposition. Each DR appears to have a distinctive role in transposition. The spacing and sequence between the DR elements in an ITR affect transposition rates, suggesting a constrained geometry is involved in the interactions of SB transposase molecules in order to achieve precise mobilization. Transposons are flanked by TA dinucleotide base-pairs that are important for excision; elimination of the TA motif on one side of the transposon significantly reduces transposition while loss of TAs on both flanks of the transposon abolishes transposition. These findings have led to the construction of a more advanced transposon that should be useful in gene transfer and insertional mutagenesis in vertebrates. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

基因电路研究综述

基因网络相关的研究是生物信息学的重要研究领域．基因电路方法是目前基因网络研究的一种重要方法，本文从以下角度介绍基因电路研究的进展情况及相关研究成果；构成基因电路的基本模块；基因电路的设计与实现；人工基因电路的应用．

基于核酸特殊结构的分子识别及核酸相关纳米结构的设计应用

核酸为生命的最基本物质之一，是生物体遗传信息的携带者，在生长、遗传、变异等一系列重大生命现象中起决定性的作用。以核酸作为新药设计的靶分子，越来越受到人们的广泛重视。然而，不像其它靶分子如蛋白质、受体等具有特定的结构和功能，核酸结构在很多情况下是同源的，而且联系到很多人体正常的生理功能；能够与核酸结合的药物又往往不具有序列选择性，这就带来明显的毒副作用。因此，寻找和发现一些与疾病相关的核酸的特殊结构，并筛选对其有特异性结合能力的小分子，是以核酸为靶的药物研究的一个重要课题。 近年来，随着纳米科学技术的兴起，以核酸作为纳米体系的结构材料开始受到人们的广泛关注。作为一类特殊的线性高分子，核酸具有化学性质稳定，结构丰富且可控，良好的刚性和柔性，精确识别，高度生物相容性，合成方便等诸多优点，是一类优良的结构材料。目前核酸相关的纳米组装结构和器件研究还处于起步阶段，但是已经呈现出良好的发展前景。 本论文主要针对核酸特殊结构的分子识别及核酸相关功能纳米结构的设计这两方面展开了研究，全文由以下两大部分组成： 第一部分通过光谱学和生物化学等手段，研究了小分子对不同核酸结构的识别作用。借助于竞争平衡透析技术，发现一类恶嗪染料(oxazine dyes)能够与多种结构核酸结合。热变性及光谱实验结果表明，oxazine染料能够诱导杂合体三链核酸poly(rA):2poly(dT)的形成，并强烈地稳定其结构，其中以cresyl violet作用最强，是迄今发现的化合物中最强的。进一步研究发现，此类化合物以嵌插方式与杂合体三链核酸结合。RNase H酶切实验表明，杂合体三链核酸的形成能够强烈地抑制RNase H核酸酶的活性。研究了oxazine-170与三链核酸poly(dA):2poly(dT)及poly(rA):2poly(rU)的相互作用，发现oxazine-170能够强烈稳定三链DNA poly(dA):2poly(dT)的结构，而对相应双链DNA不具稳定作用；对三链RNA poly(rA):2poly(rU)及相应的双链RNA都有一定稳定作用，但作用不强。进一步研究发现，oxazine-170能够以两种结合方式与核酸结合：嵌插方式和外部静电堆积作用。研究了oxazine-170及cresyl violet与单链核酸的相互作用。研究发现oxazine-170能够序列特异性地与单链核酸poly(rA) 结合，CD光谱及AFM研究发现oxazine-170诱导poly(rA)形成新的二级结构。UV光谱、FL光谱及RLS研究发现poly(rA)促使oxazine 170形成H-aggregate，并以poly(rA)为模板自组装。而cresyl violet能够与单链核酸poly(rA)及poly(dA)结合，且采用不同的结合方式： cresyl violet能够与oxazine-170 类似地以poly(rA)为模板自组装；以嵌插方式与poly(dA)结合，并诱导其单链碱基堆积方式的改变。通过以上实验结果，我们进一步揭示了oxazine染料作为肿瘤细胞染色及光动力学治疗试剂的结构基础，对进一步设计、合成更加高效的抗肿瘤药物具有一定的指导意义。 第二部分中，我们尝试设计了几种基于核酸的纳米结构功能体系，并讨论了其相关应用。利用有机小分子coralyne能够诱导聚腺嘌呤序列反平行双链结构的形成，实现了一类新型的小分子诱导的纳米金组装结构。并以(dA)16功能化的金纳米粒子作为新型纳米探针，发展了一种简单的筛选单链核酸聚腺嘌呤序列结合分子的筛选方法。利用核酸限制性内切酶酶切位点回文序列的结构特点，设计了一种以DNA功能化的金纳米粒子组装体为酶切底物的比较通用的核酸限制性内切酶活力检测方法，并进一步用于甲基化酶活性检测及其抑制剂的筛选。基于单链DNA富胞嘧啶i-motif结构在不同pH值条件下的形成与解离，设计了一类质子驱动的DNA分子镊子，与基于链交换反应的DNA分子镊子相比，该体系更加简单，工作效率更高。随后，我们又通过合理设计，得到了两种分别能够结合与释放DNA和蛋白的分子镊子，为其应用做了一些探索。

非洲爪蟾Brunol1 基因的功能以及文昌鱼肌动蛋白基因家族扩增的研究

BRUNOL 蛋白又称CELF（CUG-BP and ETR3 like factor）是一种典型的RNA 结合蛋白，它的N 端含有两个连续的RNA 识别结构域（RNA recognition motif，RRM)， C 端有一个RRM 结构域。主要参与对可变剪切、翻译、降解和编辑等基因表达转录后水平的调节。迄今在人类中已发现6 个Brunol 基因家族成员，即Brunol1-6；在非洲爪蟾中已发现了5 个：Brunol1-5。近期，我们克隆了爪蟾的Brunol1-5 并研究了它们在非洲爪蟾早期胚胎发育过程中的时空表达图式。结果显示，与以往研究结果一致， Brunol1 基因高量、特异地在神经管中表达，提示Brunol1 基因可能对于爪蟾的神经系统的发生和发育发挥着重要的作用。本实验利用Morpholino 和过表达等手段研究了爪蟾Brunol1 基因对于爪蟾早期胚胎发育的影响。结果显示，在下调和过表达Brunol 1 基因的情况下都会导致胚胎出现体轴弯曲，眼睛和头部发育不全等表型。而将 Brunol1 基因特异的Morpholino 与它的mRNA 共注射时可以明显挽救这一表型。我们通过原位杂交实验，检测了一些爪蟾神经系统的标记基因在Brunol1 过表达胚胎中的表达情况，结果发现过表达Brunol1 基因能显著地下调Krox-20, N-tubulin, Lhx2, Pax6 等的表达，而Sox2 和Otx2 的表达却未受影响。这说明Brunol1 的异常表达确实影响到了神经系统发育过程的信号调控网络，导致胚胎发育的畸形。该结果将有助于阐述Brunol1 基因对于脊椎动物神经系统发生的意义。肌动蛋白是一种分布广泛而且在进化上十分保守的蛋白，它是构成细胞骨架的关键组分。通常人们将肌动蛋白分成肌肉型和胞质型两种类型，它们各自行使着不同的功能。在此，我们通过对古老的脊索动物文昌鱼的肌动蛋白基因家族进行系统的分析发现，文昌鱼中该基因家族成员多达30 多个，而且它们中很多都有连锁现象；进化分析的结果显示，文昌鱼的肌动蛋白基因家族通过串联重复序列的复制发生扩增；从结构上看，它们的基因结构多样化, 包含2-7 个外显子；同时，我们还克隆了两个不同的文昌鱼肌肉型的肌动蛋白基因，并进一步比较了它们在文昌鱼早期胚胎中的表达图式。结果显示，这两个基因在表达上有着细微的差别，这提示文昌鱼肌动蛋白基因家族成员在功能上的分化。该结论将有助于阐述肌动蛋白基因家族的进化以及它们在脊索动物发育的中所扮演的功能。

恒河猴TRIM5α 的组织分布及TRIMCyp 限制HIV-1 病毒颗粒产生的初步研究

三重基序蛋白TRIM5α(Tripartite motif protein 5 alpha)是哺乳动物细胞中一种重要的限制因子，广泛分布于各种哺乳动物细胞中。人类TRIM5α mRNA 广泛表达于人类各个组织中，并且I 型干扰素IFN-α/β/γ 均能与TRIM5α 基因启动子的ISRE 元件结合，上调TRIM5α mRNA 的表达。恒河猴(Macaca mulatta)TRIM5α 是恒河猴体内重要的限制因子。目前对恒河猴尤其是中国恒河猴TRIM5α 的组织分布以及在受到外界刺激时TRIM5α mRNA 表达量的变化研究还未见报道。本论文通过从中国恒河猴各组织中提取总RNA，以β-actin 基因作为内参照，通过逆转录PCR 检测各组织中TRIM5α mRNA 的表达。我们选择用HIV-GFP-VSVG 感染、用佛波脂(Phorbol myfismte acetate, PMA)+离子霉素(Ionomycin, Ion)，CD28 抗体+CD49d 抗体分别共刺激恒河猴PBMC，研究不同刺激对中国恒河猴TRIM5α mRNA 表达量的影响。研究发现：TRIM5α mRNA 广泛表达于恒河猴各组织中，在免疫系统和泌尿生殖系统各组织，如腹淋巴结、睾丸和附睾中表达量最高，而在神经系统各组织如大脑、脊髓中表达量比较少，在其他各组织中未见明显的表达差异。此外HIV-GFP-VSVG 感染、PMA+ Ion 与CD28 抗体+CD49d 抗体分别共刺激PBMC 均能促进PBMC TRIM5α mRNA 表达量的上调。 TRIM5α 作为恒河猴体内的最主要的限制HIV-1 感染的限制因子，除了可能通过促进HIV-1 的脱壳和阻止整合前复合物PIC(pre-integration complex)入核，恒河猴TRIM5α 还能限制HIV-1 病毒颗粒的产生。在这个过程中B30.2 结构域是非必需的，而B-box2 和Coiled-Coil 结构域起着决定性的作用。因为鹰猴(Aotes trivirgatus)TRIMCyp(omTRIMCyp) 蛋白和北平顶猴(Macaca leouina) TRIMCyp(npmTRIMCyp）蛋白的B-box2 和Coiled-Coil 结构域与恒河猴TRIM5α 的B-box2 和Coiled-Coil 具有很高的同源性，我们希望了解鹰猴TRIMCyp 蛋白和北平顶猴TRIMCyp 蛋白对HIV-1 病毒颗粒的产生是否有限制作用。本论文主要通过将质粒pNL4.3 分别与质粒pLPCX 、pLPCX-npmTRIMCyp-HA 、 pLPCX-omTRIMCyp-HA和pLPCX-rhTRIM5α-HA共转染293T细胞，通过western blot 检测细胞内Gag 蛋白和TRIM5 蛋白的表达情况，研究omTRIMCyp 蛋白和 npmTRIMCyp 蛋白对HIV-1 病毒颗粒产生的限制作用。结果表明：北平顶猴 TRIMCyp 蛋白、鹰猴TRIMCyp 蛋白都能不同程度的促进HIV-1 病毒Gag 蛋白的降解。

TRIM5-CypA融合基因与北平顶猴易感HIV-1的机制研究

天然免疫分子TRIM5α（tripartite motif protein 5α）是近年来发现的一种重要的宿主细胞内逆转录病毒限制因子。在灵长类动物细胞中，TRIM5α蛋白可以在病毒进入细胞后、逆转录前的阶段抑制HIV-1、N-MLV和EIAV等逆转录病毒的复制。由于TRIM5α分子的作用，绝大部分旧大陆猴（Old World monkey）都不能感染HIV-1。而在新大陆猴（New World monkey）中，鹰猴是唯一不感染HIV-1的灵长类动物。研究证明，鹰猴细胞中存在的TRIM5-CypA融合蛋白（owl monkey TRIM5-CypA，omTRIMCyp）介导了抗HIV-1的作用，从而使鹰猴不能感染HIV-1。研究证明，平顶猴是旧大陆猴中唯一报道可以感染HIV-1的灵长类动物，但是其感染HIV-1的机制并不清楚。根据现行的灵长类动物分类学，原属平顶猴群体（M. nemestrina group）的三个亚种分为猕猴属的三个不同种：巽他平顶猴（Sunda pig-tailed macaque，M. nemestrina），北平顶猴（Northern pig-tailed macaque，M. leonina）和明打威猴（Mentawai macaque，M. pagensis）。本论文对中国云南境内北平顶猴TRIM5基因座和感染HIV-1的相关性进行了研究。通过PCR和测序对北平顶猴基因组TRIM5基因座进行分析，发现一个CypA假基因的cDNA通过逆转座机制插入至TRIM5基因座的3’-UTR区域，形成了一个不同于鹰猴TRIM5-CypA的新型融合基因npmTRIMCyp（northern pig-tailed macaque TRIM5-CypA）。通过RT-PCR对npmTRIMCyp融合基因的转录本进行分析，我们鉴定出npmTRIMCyp共有3种不同的选择性剪接产物，分别为npmTRIMCypV1-V3。进一步克隆和测序这3种不同选择性剪接体，通过丰度和序列分析证实：npmTRIMCypV2是优势剪接体，可能在该融合基因产物的功能中发挥作用。研究发现北平顶猴npmTRIMCyp融合基因主要转录本中外显子7和8均被剪切掉。外显子7剪接丢失机制源于TRIM5第6内含子内 3’剪接位点的G/T突变。我们克隆了npmTRIMCyp融合基因cDNA的蛋白编码区ORF，并构建了重组表达npmTRIMCyp的载体，转染HeLa和HeLa-T4细胞并获得稳定表达的细胞株。通过感染HIV-1证实，npmTRIMCyp融合蛋白不能够限制HIV-1的感染和复制，这可能是北平顶猴作为旧大陆猴中唯一对HIV-1易感的灵长类动物的重要分子机制之一。通过HIV-1感染灵长类动物PBMCs实验证实，北平顶猴可以感染HIV-1。npmTRIMCyp可以有效地限制HIV-2ROD的复制，但对SIVmac239只有十分微弱的限制活性。通过构建鹰猴omTRIMCyp和北平顶猴npmTRIMCyp的置换剪接体（SWAP-1和SWAP-2），转染融合基因及其置换剪接体的CRFK细胞激光共聚焦实验证明，npmTRIMCyp、SWAP1和SWAP2在细胞内主要存在于胞浆中。稳定表达融合蛋白和置换剪接体的CRFK细胞感染HIV-1-GFP-VSVG分析表明，含omTRIMCyp外显子7的SWAP-1和SWAP-2均具有限制HIV-1活性，但SWAP-1的活性更强一些，这表明TRIM5结构域的外显子7可能在介导对HIV-1的限制活性中发挥了协同辅助作用。免疫共沉淀研究表明，npmTRIMCyp不能识别和结合HIV-1的衣壳蛋白。对北平顶猴中介导识别逆转录病毒区域的基因组部分进行了测序，共鉴定出46个多态性位点，表明在北平顶猴识别逆转录病毒衣壳区域存在较高的多态性。

真核生物FBPase和SBPase的进化研究

迄今为止，卡尔文循环是真核生物中唯一的二氧化碳固定途径。卡尔文循环利用NADPH和ATP将CO2转变成有机物，是自然界中有机物的主要来源。虽然，卡尔文循环中的酶促反应过程早在1956年就已经阐明，多数参与光合真核生物卡尔文循环的酶/基因的起源也有了较多的研究。但是，循环的5个关键酶中FBPase和SBPase的起源问题依然存在争议。本文首先对处于光合真核生物进化的关键地位的两种绿藻——衣藻和团藻中的FBPase进行了研究，进而对真核FBPase和SBPase进行了分子系统分析，以探讨光合真核生物中卡尔文循环的起源。 本研究发现：不同于一般光合真核生物中FBPase具有“胞质型”和“叶绿体型”两种亚型（分别参与糖异生途径和卡尔文循环），衣藻和团藻的基因组中只有一个编码叶绿体定位的FBPase （FBPase1）基因；多序列比对结果显示，FBPase1具有叶绿体型FBPase特有的参与光调节的氨基酸片段插入。再结合别人的“衣藻中的FBPase1的酶活性受光调节”的实验证据，本文认为该FBPase1为叶绿体型FBPase。有意思的是，通过搜索衣藻和团藻的基因组，本文发现了一个新型的FBPase酶基因（fbp2）。RT-PCR结果和EST数据均显示该基因在这两种绿藻中具转录活性。通过组装EST序列，获得了衣藻fbp2的cDNA和相应的蛋白序列。分析显示两种绿藻fbp2编码的氨基酸序列包含Li+-敏感磷酸酶基序（motif）和II类FBPase特有的FBPase_glpX结构域（domain）。这表明，该基因编码的蛋白（FBPase2）是II类FBPase。这是第一次在真核生物中鉴定得到这种原核型II类FBPase。分子系统分析进一步揭示了衣藻和团藻的共同祖先可能通过一次古老的水平基因转移事件，从放线杆菌亚纲的共同祖先中获得了该基因。由于放线杆菌亚纲II类FBPase具有胞质型FBPase的重要特征，因此推测所发现的FBPase2具有胞质型FBPase的特征。软件预测该FBPase2具有约20aa的信号肽，为叶绿体定位。再加上有研究表明衣藻的糖异生途径主要发生在叶绿体中。因此本文认为衣藻和团藻中也有两个FBPase同功酶；但与其它光合真核生物不同的是，胞质型FBPase发生了丢失，取而代之的是原核型II类FBPase参与其叶绿体中的糖异生途径。这种FBPase的不同情形很可能与这两种绿藻中独特的代谢途径区室化有关。 I 在细菌中，果糖-1，6-二磷酸和景天庚酮糖-1，7-二磷酸的去磷酸化是由果糖-1，6-/景天庚酮糖-1，7-二磷酸酶（F/SBPase）双功能酶催化的；但是，在光合真核生物中却是由底物特异的叶绿体型FBPase和SBPase分别催化的。通过结构域分析，本文发现细菌F/SBPase双功能酶可以划分为进化关系很远的两类（I类和II类）。通过选取来自更多细菌类群的代表序列，与真核FBPase和SBPase一起进行分子系统分析。结果显示，FBPase和SBPase既不是起源于I类F/SBPase双功能酶，也不是起源于II类F/SBPase双功能酶；而是分别起源于不同的真细菌I类FBPase。真核FBPase并没有与α-变形菌或蓝细菌FBPase聚在一起，却与不同类群细菌FBPase形成的clade形成姐妹枝。因此，尚不能明确真核FBPase起源于那类真细菌。真核SBPase形成的clade与ε-变形菌FBPase形成的clade在一起形成姐妹枝，表明SBPase很可能是通过一种未知机制起源于ε-变形菌的FBPase。 最后，基于上述研究结果并结合其它研究事实，本文还对光合真核生物中卡尔文循环的起源进行了探讨。

硫手性有机小分子催化剂的设计、合成及其在不对称亚胺氢转移还原中的应用

过去十多年，世界手性药物市场需求迅速增长，手性制药工业的发展壮大，已经引起了各国政府、学术界，特别是企业界的高度重视。手性药物中含有大量的手性胺单元，因此研究高效构建手性胺结构单元的方法具有重要的意义和实用价值，而亚胺的不对称还原是合成手性胺最便捷的方法。 手性有机小分子路易斯碱催化三氯氢硅不对称还原亚胺是最近几年才发展起来的一类新的亚胺不对称还原方法。尽管在对映选择性和底物适用范围等方面已经获得了突破性的进展，但是，高性能的路易斯碱催化剂仅局限于N-甲酰氨基酸酰胺一种类型，而且其底物适用范围和催化活性仍不够理想。因此，发展新型催化剂很有必要。 手性硫氧化物作为手性诱导剂的应用已经有数十年的时间，广泛应用在不对称合成及天然产物的全合成中。理论上，硫氧结构单元也可以作为路易斯碱，对硅烷类试剂进行活化，而且硫氧键还有碳氧键难以比拟的先天优势，硫原子自带手性特征，在反应过程中，手性中心离反应位点更近，因此，从手性硫氧化合物出发，极有可能开发出新的高效手性路易斯碱催化剂。最近，Kobayashi和Khiar在亚胺的不对称烯丙基化反应中用手性亚砜活化烯丙基三氯硅烷，获得了较好的ee值，但反应中手性亚砜的用量都需要化学计量以上，因此还不能算做真正意义上的催化剂，进一步的文献调研也未见真正意义上的硫手性有机小分子催化剂。 本文首次成功将硫手性亚磺酰胺衍生物应用于催化三氯氢硅对亚胺的不对称还原，在经过对亚磺酰胺衍生物的多次结构优化，开发出了合成容易，催化活性和立体选择性都很优良，并且有着前所未有的底物普适性的新型手性路易斯碱催化剂。 我们首先尝试将商品化的20mol%叔丁基亚磺酰胺和对甲基亚磺酰胺直接用作催化剂催化三氯氢硅对亚胺的不对称还原，尽管仅获得中等的收率和很低的对映选择性，但证明我们的设计思路是可行的。在此基础上，我们以叔丁基亚磺酰胺为原料和基本骨架，设计合成了一系列的亚磺酰胺类催化剂，通过对催化剂的结构改造，发现当催化剂中存在较强酸性的酚羟基时，催化效果得到大幅提高。随着对催化剂的进一步结构优化，我们找到了一个结构简单，催化效果还不错的催化剂，经过反应条件优化以后，催化反应的收率最高能达到98%，对映选择性最高达93%，并且这个催化剂的底物适应范围比之前报道的催化剂都要广泛。针对酚羟基在催化剂中的重要作用，我们进行了仔细的机理研究后发现，在催化反应中，催化剂极有可能是通过双分子机理去活化三氯氢硅从而实现不对称催化的，而酚羟基的作用就是通过分子间氢键促进双分子催化剂与三氯氢硅的络合。受此启发，我们设计了一系列具有双齿结构的催化剂，通过对双齿催化剂的结构优化，最终筛选出了一个结构更加简单，但催化效果更好的双齿催化剂。10mol%该催化剂催化亚胺还原最高获得95%的收率和96%的ee值。这一结果也进一步验证了我们先前对催化剂机理的推测。 随后，我们还尝试将这些催化剂用于二级胺和芳香酮的直接还原胺化反应中，虽然能获得不错的收率，但对映选择性却很差，我们对反应条件进行了仔细的摸索，仍然没有获得突破。但这些实验为进一步研究二级胺和酮的不对称直接还原胺化反应奠定了良好的基础。 In the past decade, the rapid growth of the global chiral drug market and the significant development of the chiral pharmaceutical industry have attracted a great deal of attention from government, academia and enterprises. Chiral amine is an important structural motif of chiral drugs. Therefore, development of methods for the construction of this motif is of great importance. Catalytic enantioselective reduction of imines represents one of the most straightforward and efficient methods for the preparation of chiral amines. The chiral Lewis base organocatalysts promoted asymmetric reduction of imines by HSiCl3 has recently achieved significant advancements. Although big breakthroughs have been made in terms of substrate generality and enantioselectivity, the highly effective catalysts are limited to N-formyl amino acid amides, of which the efficiency and substrate scope remain unsatisfactory. Therefore, development of novel organocatalysts for this transformation is in great demand. Chiral sulfoxides have been well established as efficient and versatile stereocontrollers and have been extensively used in asymmetric synthesis and total synthesis of natural products. The S=O structural motif of sulfoxide could also behave as Lewis base activator for cholorsilane reagents, which, moreover, could be even better than caboxamide considering that the sulfur atom is chiral and thus the chirality center is closer to the reaction center. There exist great potentials that highly effective novel Lewis base organocatalysts could be developed starting from S-chiral sulfoxides. Recently, several S-chiral sulfoxides were reported by Kobayashi and Khiar to be used as Lewis base catalyst to activate allyltrichlorosilanes in asymmetric allylations and good enantioselectivities were obtained. However, these S-chiral sulfoxides were all used at a more than stoichiometric amount and were thus not authentically catalytic. A careful literature survey further revealed that there has been so far no S-chiral organocatalyst available. In this study, we, for the first time, successfully used S-chiral sulfinamides as Lewis base organocatalysts for the asymmetric reduction of ketimines by HSiCl3. After several rounds of structural optimization, we developed the first example of highly effective S-chiral organocatalysts, which promoted the asymmetric reduction of ketimines with trichlorosilane in high yield and excellent enantioselectivity with unprecedented substrate spectrum. In our initial practice, we examined 20mol% of the commercially available (R)-tert-butanesulfinamide and (S)-toluenesulfinamide as the catalyst in the hydrosilylation of ketimine. Although the product was only furnished in moderate yield and low ee, these results demonstrated that our strategy of catalyst design is on the right way. Next, starting from chiral tert-butanesulfinamide, we prepared a series of tert-butanesulfinamide derivatives via simple reductive amination and examined their catalytic efficiencies in the reduction of ketimine. We found that the catalyst bearing a phenolic hydroxyl group exhibited good reactivity and enantioselectivity. On the basis of which, we obtained a structurally simple and highly effective novel organocatalyst, affording the product in 98% yield and 93% ee under optimal reaction conditions. After careful exploration on the role of phenolic hydroxyl group in the catalyst, we speculated that two molecules of the catalyst be involved in the course of reaction, of which the assembly around the silicon center is facilitated by the intermolecular hydrogen bonding through the phenolic hydroxyl groups. Thus, we incorporated two units of sulfonamide into one molecular and prepared a new type of bissulfinamides organocatalysts and examined their catalytic efficiencies in the reduction of ketimine. After optimizing the structure of these catalysts, we finally obtained a novel organocatalyst which has even simpler molecular structure but showed better efficacies, 10mol% of which afforded up to 97% yield and 96% ee under optimal reaction conditions. These results further proved our speculation about the catalytic mechanism. We also examined the newly developed S-chiral organocatalysts in direct asymmetric reductive amination of secondary amines with aromatic ketone. The product was furnished in good yield but in low ee. No better results could be obtained despite our intense opimization efforts. Nevertheless, these experiments laid excellent foundations for eventual success.

不同抗旱性青稞LEA2/LEA3蛋白基因的克隆与表达

作物的抗旱性是一个多基因控制的、极为复杂的数量性状，植物对干旱在分子水平上的差异反应通过植物组织生理和细胞生物学水平，最终表现为植物抗旱性的不同。在我国，旱地农业超过耕地面积的50%，但水资源短缺，因此培育和选育抗旱高产作物是发展节水型农业最有效的途径。 青藏高原气候恶劣、年均降雨量少，也是世界大麦初生起源中心，因而蕴藏了十分丰富的与抗逆相关的种质资源材料，从这些特殊的资源材料克隆抗旱基因，不仅对培育抗旱、优质、高产大麦新品种具有重要理论意义和经济价值，而且对整个作物抗旱基础和育种应用研究都具重大促进作用。 为了筛选青稞（裸大麦，Hordeum vulgare ssp. vulgare）抗旱性材料，本研究选用来自青藏高原不同地区的84份青稞为材料，在叶片失水率(water loss rate, WLR)检测分析的基础上，选择失水率值差异显著的12个品种，通过相对含水量（relative water content, RWC）和反复干旱法评价其抗旱性，并通过植株对干旱胁迫下的丙二醛（MDA）含量和游离脯氨酸（free-proline）含量变化，了解不同抗旱性材料的生理反应特性。选择抗旱性强弱不同的品种各两份进行LEA2蛋白基因(Dhn6基因)、LEA3蛋白基因(HVA1基因)的克隆，比较LEA蛋白结构差异与作物抗旱性之间的关系。同时，对抗旱性不同的青稞品种受到干旱时间不同的失水变化率（dynamics water loss rate, DWLR）进行了检测；对抗旱性不同的青稞对照材料进行2 h、4 h、8 h和12 h的快速干旱处理，通过SYBR Green实时荧光定量RT-PCR技术对Dhn6基因、Dhn11基因、Dhn13基因和HVA1基因在不同抗旱性材料受到不同干旱时间处理后的相对表达水平进行了检测。本研究对LEA蛋白基因在抗旱性不同的青稞材料中的干旱胁迫分子水平上的差异反应进行了研究，也对植物的抗旱机理进行了初步探讨。主要研究结果如下： 1. 青稞苗期进行离体叶片失水率测定结果表明，来自青藏高原的84份青稞材料的WLR在0.086~0.205gh-1g-1DW之间。选择WLR低于0.1gh-1g-1DW和WLR高于0.18gh-1g-1DW的品种各6份，并对苗期分别进行未干旱及干旱12小时的处理。相对含水量检测结果表明，低失水率青稞材料干旱后的具有更高的相对含水量，盆栽缺水试验也显示叶片失水率低的材料耐旱能力强于失水率高的材料。通过水合茚三酮法测定离体叶片游离脯氨酸的含量，结果表明，所有品种未干旱处理时，游离脯氨酸含量差异不大（17.10~25.74 µgg-1FW）；干旱12小时后，低失水率的品种游离脯氨酸含量明显增高（32.99~53.45µgg-1FW），高失水率品种的游离脯氨酸含量与干旱前变化不明显(P<0.05)。硫代巴比妥酸法测定离体叶片丙二醛(MDA)含量，结果显示，12份所选对照品种中，丙二醛的含量在0.97~2.74nmolg-1FW，干旱12小时后丙二醛的含量显著上升（1.46~4.74nmolg-1FW），高失水率的6个品种的丙二醛含量在未干旱和干旱处理时都明显高于低WLR品种。本研究结果表明青稞的低失水率、低丙二醛含量、高相对含水量和高脯氨酸含量具相关性（P<0.05）。综上研究，我们认为作物失水率的测定可以作为快速检测作物抗旱性的指标之一，因此，强抗旱品种喜玛拉10号(TR1)、品比14号(TR2)和弱抗旱品种冬青8号(TS1)、QB24 (TS2)被选作抗旱基因克隆和表达分析的研究材料。 2. 高等植物胚胎发育晚期丰富蛋白(late embryogenesis abundant proteins, LEA proteins)与植物耐脱水性密切相关，为了探讨青稞LEA蛋白结构差异性与植物抗旱性的关系，本研究以强抗旱品种（喜玛拉10号、品比14号）和弱抗旱品种（冬青8号、QB24）为材料，利用同源克隆法，通过RT-PCR，分别克隆了与抗旱性密切相关的Dhn6基因和HVA1基因。Dhn6基因序列分析结果表明，强抗旱品种品比14号和弱抗旱品种冬青8号Dhn6基因所克隆到的序列为1026bp，它们之间只有5个碱基的差异；喜玛拉10号和QB24克隆到的序列长963bp。在强弱不同的抗旱品种中有22个核苷酸易突变位点，相应的脱水素氨基酸序列推导结果表明，22个核苷酸突变位点中，仅有8个位点导致相应的氨基酸残基的改变，其余的位点系同义突变，另外，21个富含甘氨酸序列的缺失并没有联系作物抗旱性特征。推测这些同义突变位点的氨基酸残基对维持青稞DHN6蛋白的正常结构和功能起着非常重要的作用，也可能DHN6蛋白对青稞长期适应逆境胁迫和遗传进化的结果。对HVA1基因的序列分析结果表明，冬青8号、QB24、品比14号和喜玛拉10号的目的基因核苷酸序列全长分别为661bp、697bp、694bp和691bp，它们都包含1个完整的开放阅读框。相应的LEA3蛋白氨基酸序列结果表明，11个高度保守的氨基酸残基组成基元重复序列的拷贝数与青稞抗旱性之间没有必然关系，在强抗旱品种（喜玛拉10号、品比14号）中三个共同的氨基酸突变位点Gln32、Arg33和Ala195可能对抗旱蛋白的结构和功能有影响；另外，强抗旱青稞品种LEA3蛋白质中11-氨基酸保守基元序列拷贝数和极性氨基酸占蛋白的比例更高，推测LEA3蛋白中基元序列拷贝数和极性氨基酸占蛋白的比例对该蛋白的结构和功能影响更大。 3. LEA蛋白基因的表达水平的上调与植物的耐脱水性密切相关，我们对强抗旱性材料（喜玛拉10号、品比14号）和弱抗旱材料（冬青8号、QB24）进行干旱处理2 h、4 h、6 h、8 h和10 h的失水变化率进行测定，结果表明弱抗旱品种在2~4小时之间失水率变化最明显，而四个对照品种的失水率在8小时后和24小时的失水率值变化不大。进一步提取青稞苗期进行2 h、4 h、8 h和12 h的干旱处理后的总RNA，通过SYBR Green实时荧光定量RT-PCR技术对青稞脱水素基因(Dhn6、Dhn11和Dhn13)和LEA3蛋白基因(HVA1)的相对表达水平受干旱时间和作物抗旱性的影响进行了检测。研究发现，抗旱性不同的青稞品种随干旱处理的时间延长，Dhn6、Dhn11、Dhn13和HVA1基因的相对表达水平不同。 Dhn6基因的相对表达水平在强抗旱青稞品种干旱8小时后快速上升，但在弱抗旱青稞品种干旱处理12小时后检测到更高表达量；Dhn11基因在对照青稞抗旱品种的表达累积水平随干旱时间的延长持续下降；整个干旱过程中，Dhn13基因的相对表达水平在弱抗旱品种持续上升，在强抗旱品种中干旱处理8小时快速上升并达到最高，干旱12小时后降低。与脱水素基因相比较，强抗旱青稞品种在干旱2小时后HVA1基因的相对表达水平显著升高，相对表达量随干旱处理的时间持续上升，在干旱12小时后达到最高；与之相比较，在整个干旱过程中，弱抗旱品种的相对表达水平显著低于强抗旱品种，在干旱8小时之前弱抗旱品种的相对表达水平变化不明显；在干旱8~12小时后却显著上升。上述结果表明，不同的LEA蛋白在植物耐脱水过程中的干旱表达累积水平不同；干旱不是诱导高等植物Dhn11基因表达的主要因素；植物的抗旱性不同，不同LEA蛋白基因对干旱的反应有差异。推测某些LEA蛋白基因的干旱胁迫早期表达累积程度与植物的抗旱性直接相关；其中，Dhn11基因和Dhn12基因不同的表达模式可能与干旱调控表达顺式作用成分(dehydration responsive element, DRE)的有无或结构上的差异有关。 本研究结果认为，(1)失水率和相对含水量可作为植物抗旱性检测的指标之一；(2) DHN6同义突变位点的氨基酸残基对维持该蛋白的正常结构和功能起着重要作用；(3) 11-氨基酸保守基元序列拷贝数和极性氨基酸的比例对LEA3蛋白结构和功能有重要影响；(4)LEA蛋白表达随着干旱胁迫程度而增加，但Dhn11基因并不受干旱诱导表达；(5)作物的抗旱性不同，LEA蛋白对干旱的累积反应并不相同，干旱早期LEA蛋白的累积程度可能会影响植物的抗旱性。 Drought resistance was a complex trait which involved multiple physiological and biochemical mechanisms and regulation of numerous genes. Because its complex traits, it is difficult to understand the mechanisms of drought resistance in plants. Plants respond to water stress through multiple physiological mechanisms at the cellular, tissue, and whole-plant levels. Tibetan hulless barley, a pure line, is a selfing annual plant that has predominantly penetrated into the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and remains stable populations there. The wide ecological range of Tibetan hulless barley differs in water availability, temperature, soil type and vegetation, which makes it possess a high potential of adaptive diversity to abiotic stresses. This adaptive genetic diversity indicates that the potential of Tibetan hulless barley serves as a good source for drought resistance alleles for breeding purposes. 12 contrasting drought-tolerant genotypes were selected to measure relative water content (RWC), maldondialdehyde (MDA) and proline content, based on values of water loss rate (WLR) and repeated drought methods from Tibetan populations of cultivated hulless barley. As a result of the screening, sensitive and tolerant genotypes were identified to clarify relationships between characteristics of LEA2/LEA3 genes sequences and expression and drought-tolerant genotypes, associated with resistance to water deficit. In addition, dynamics water loss rate (DWLR) was measured to observe the changes on diffrential drought-tolerant genotypes. Real-time quantitative RT-PCR was applied to detect relative expression levels of Dhn6, Dhn11, Dhn13 and HVA1 genes in sensitive and tolerant genotypes with 2 h, 4 h, 8h and 12 h of dehydration. In the present study, differential sequences and expression of LEA2/LEA3 genes were explored in Tibetan hulless barley, associated with phenotypically diverse drought-tolerant genotypes. 1. The assessments of WLR and RWC were considered as an alternative measure of plant water statues reflecting the metabolic activity in plants, and the parameters of MDA and proline contents were usually consistent with the resistance to water stress. The values of detached leaf WLR of the tested genotypes were highly variable among 84 genotypes, ranging from 0.086 to 0.205 g/h.g DW. The 12 most contrasting genotypes (6 genotypes with the lowest values of WLR and 6 genotypes with the highest values of WLR) were further validated by measuring RWC, MDA and free-proline contents, which were well watered and dehydrated for 12 h. Results of RWC indicated that the values of 12 contrasting genotypes RWC ranged from 89.94% to 93.38% under condition of well water, without significant differences, but 6 genotypes with lower WLR had higher RWC suffered from 12 h dehydration. The results indicated that lower MDA contents, lower scores of WLR and higher proline contents were associated with drought-tolerant genotypes in hulless barley. Remarkably, proline amounts were increased more notable in 6 tolerant genotypes than 6 sensitive genotypes after excised leaves were dehydrated for 12 h, with control to slight changes under condition of well water. Results of MDA contents showed that six 6 tolerant genotypes had lower MDA contents than the 6 sensitive genotypes under both stressed and non-stressed conditions. As a result of that screening, drought- resistant genotypes (Ximala 10 and Pinbi 14) and drought-sensitive genotypes (Dongqing 8 and QB 24) were chosen for comparing the differential characteristics of LEA2/LEA3 genes and their expression analysis. It was conclusion that measurements of WLR could be considered an alternative index as screening of drought-tolerant genotypes in crops. 2. Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins were thought to protect against water stress in plants. To explore the relationships between configuration of LEA proteins and phenotypically diverse drought-tolerant genotypes, sequences of LEA genes and their deduced proteins were compared in Tibetan hulless barley. Results of comparing Dhn6 gene in Ximala 10 and QB24 indicated that absence of 63bp was found, except that only 5 mutant nucleotides were found. While 22 mutant sites were taken place in Dhn6 gene between sensitive and tolerant lines, 14 synonymous mutation sites appeared in the contrasting genotypes. The additional/absent polypeptide of 21 polar amino acid residues was not consistent with phenotypically drought-tolerant genotypes in hulless barley. It was deduced that synonymous mutation sites would play important roles in holding out right configurations and functions on DHN6 protein. The sequencing analysis results indicated that each cloned HVA1 gene from four selected genotypes contained an entire open reading frame. The whole sequence of HVA1 gene from Dongqing 8, QB24, Pinbi 14 and Ximala 10 was respectively 661bp, 697bp, 694bp and 691bp. Results of DNA sequence analyses showed that the differences in nucleotides of HVA1 gene in sensitive genotypes were not consistent with that of tolerant genotypes, except for absence of 33 nucleotides from +154 to +186 (numbering from ATG) in QB24. Database searches using deduced amino acid sequences showed a high homology in LEA3 proteins in the selected genotypes. Multiple sequence alignments revealed that LEA3 protein from Dongqing 8 was composed of 8 repeats of an 11 amino acid motif, less the fourth motif than Pinbi 14, Ximala 10 and QB24. Consistent mutant amino acid residues appeared in contrasting genotypes by aligning and comparing the coding sequence region, including Gln32, Arg33 and Ala195 in tolerant genotypes as compared to Asp32, Glu33 and Thr195 (Thr184 in Dongqing 8) in sensitive lines. It was concluded that consistent appearance of Gln32, Arg33 and Ala195 would contributed to functions of LEA3 protein in crops, as well as higher proportion of 11-amino-repeating motifs and polar amino acid residues. 3. Most of the LEA genes are up-regulated by dehydration, salinity, or low temperature, are also induced by application of exogenous ABA, which increases in concentration in plants under various stress conditions and acts as a mobile stress signal. Higher levels of proteins of LEA group 3 accumulated was correlated well with high level of desiccation tolerance in severely dehydrated plant seedlings. Dehydrins (DHNs), members of LEA2 protein, are an immunologically distinct protein family, and Dhn genes expression is associated with plant response to dehydration. Dynamic water loss rate was measured between sensitive genotypes and tolerant genotypes after they were dehydrated for 2 h, 4 h, 6h and 8 h. Detailed measurements of WLR at the early stage of dehydration (2, 4, 6, and 8 h) showed that WLR was stabilizing after 8 h, and there were no significant changes between these values and WLR after 24 h. Drought stress was applied to 10-day-old seedlings by draining the solution from the container for defined dehydration periods. Leaf tissues of the selected genotypes were harvested from control plants (time 0); and after 2, 4, 8, and 12 h of dehydration. Differential expression trends of Dhn6, Dhn11, Dhn13 and HVA1 genes were detected in phenotypically diverse drought-tolerant hulless barleys, related to different time of dehydration. Results of quantitative real-time PCR indicated that relative level of HVA1 expression was always higher in tolerant genotypes, rapidly increasing at the earlier stages (after 2-4 h of dehydration). However, HVA1 expressions of sensitive genotypes had a fast increase from 8 h to 12 h of stress. Significant differences in expression trends of dehydrin genes between tolerant genotypes and sensitive lines were detected, mainly in Dhn6 and Dhn13 gene, depending on the duration of the dehydration stress. The relative expression levels of Dhn6 gene were significantly higher in tolerant genotypes after 8 h dehydration, by control with notable higher expression levels after 12 h water stress in sensitive ones. The relative expression levels of Dhn13 gene tended to ascend during exposure to dehydration in drought-sensitive genotypes. However, fluctuate trends of Dhn13 expression level were detected in drought-resistant lines, including in lower expression levels of 12 h dehydration as compared to 8 h water stress. It was conclusion that (1) diverse LEA proteins would play variable roles in resisting water stress in plants; (2) expression of Dhn11 gene was not induced by dehydrated signals because of the trends of expression descended in contrasting genotypes suffered from water deficit and (3) variable accumulations on LEA proteins would be appear in diverse drought-tolerant genotypes during dehydrations. It is deduced that higher accumulations of Dhn6 and Dhn13 expression in 8 h dehydration are related to diverse drought-tolerant lines in crops. The present results indicated that different dehydrin genes would play variable functional roles in resisting water stress when plants were suffered from water deficit. The authors suggest physiologically different reactions between resistant and sensitive genotypes may be the results of differential expression of drought-resistant genes and related signal genes in plants. In addition, contrarily induced expression of Dhn11 and Dhn12 was related to dehydration responsive element (DRE) in barleys. The present study indicated that (1) measurements of WLR and RWC could be considered as one index of drought-tolerant screenings; (2) synonymous mutation sites would play important roles in holding out right configurations and functions on DHN6 protein, (3) higher proportion of 11-amino-repeating motifs and polar amino acid residues would contribute to functions on LEA3 protein, (4) the longer drought, the more accumulation on LEA proteins, except for Dhn11 gene in crops and (5) differential responses on expression of LEA protein genes would result in physiological traits of drought tolerance in plants.