Comparative expression analysis of transcription factor genes in the endostyle of invertebrate chordates

The endostyle of invertebrate chordates is a pharyngeal organ that is thought to be homologous with the follicular thyroid of vertebrates. Although thyroid-like features such as iodine-concentrating and peroxidase activities are located in the dorsolateral part of both ascidian and amphioxus endostyles, the structural organization and numbers of functional units are different. To estimate phylogenetic relationships of each functional zone with special reference to the evolution of the thyroid, we have investigated, in ascidian and amphioxus, the expression patterns of thyroid-related transcription factors such as TTF-2/MoxE4 and Pax2/5/8, as well as the forkhead transcription factors FoxQ1 and FoxA. Comparative gene expression analyses depicted an overall similarity between ascidians and amphioxus endostyles, while differences in expression patterns of these genes might be specifically related to the addition or elimination of a pair of glandular zones. Expressions of Ci-FoxE and BbFoxE4 suggest that the ancestral FoxE class might have been recruited for the formation of thyroid-like region in a possible common ancestor of chordates. Furthermore, coexpression of FoxE4, Pax2/5/8, and TPO in the dorsolateral part of both ascidian and amphioxus endostyles suggests that genetic basis of the thyroid function was already in place before the vertebrate lineage. (c) 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

牙鲆rag基因的克隆及表达研究

牙鲆在中国北方沿海地区形成了大规模的工厂化养殖，成为我国海水养殖的一大重要产业。然而疾病的频繁发生严重阻碍了这一产业的发展，为了保证牙鲆产业稳定、健康、持续地发展，开展鱼类免疫系统的基础研究，提高鱼类抵抗病原菌侵害的能力，本研究从牙鲆免疫系统的个体发育过程入手，克隆了其rag（recombination activating gene）基因，在此基础上对其组织特异性表达进行了分析。 研究结果表明牙鲆rag1基因由4个外显子和3个内含子组成，第一个外显子位于5’非翻译区，这一外显子存在两种不同的剪切方式。牙鲆rag1基因编码1068个氨基酸。牙鲆rag2基因的编码区序列长为1602 bp，编码533个氨基酸，没有在牙鲆rag2基因编码区内发现内含子的存在。rag基因间序列长为3128 bp，两个基因共用一段3’非编码区。 本试验通过RT-PCR检测发现，牙鲆的rag1和rag2基因在头肾和体肾中均有表达。整装原位杂交结果表明，牙鲆在受精后第8天开始起有rag1和rag2基因的表达，主要在胸鳍前面，腮背部的部位表达，这个区域与后来胸腺出现的位置相一致。冰冻切片结果显示，rag是在靠近咽部的区域有表达。石蜡切片原位杂交结果显示，rag基因在胸腺中的表达显示出不均一性，着色较深的为皮层区，而着色比较浅的为髓部。 将牙鲆rag1基因的一部分（编码559个氨基酸）和rag2全基因序列（编码533个氨基酸）插入到表达质粒pProEXTM HTa上，在大肠杆菌E. coli BL-21中进行体外表达与分析，结合BD TALONTM Metal Affinity Resins亲和柱纯化了RAG2蛋白。

水母雪莲毛状根细胞系

本发明涉及一种水母雪莲毛状根细胞系R0405，其保藏号CGMCC No.1557；本发明的水母雪莲毛状根细胞系能够在无激素培养中自主生长，而且毛状根中的生物碱含量得到提高，可达到干重的2.1％。将有利于离体培养条件下生产目的产物研究，并有助于下一步解决天然雪莲资源匮乏的问题的研究。

乍得西南部中新生代火山作用与盆地演化

Located in the Central and West African, Chad, which is not well geological explored, is characterized by Mesozoic- Cenozoic intra-continental rift basins. The boreholes exposed that, during Mesozoic-Cenozoic times, volcanic activities were intense in these basins, but study on volcanic rocks is very weak, especially on those embedded in rift basins, and so far systematic and detailed work has still no carried out. Based on the project of China National Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Corporation, “The analysis of reservoir condition and the evaluation of exploration targets of seven basins in block H in Chad”, and the cooperative project between Institute of Geology and Geophysics, CAS and CNPC International (Chad) Co. Ltd., “Chronology and geochemistry studies on Mesozoic-Cenozoic volcanic rocks from southwestern Chad Basins”, systematic geochronology, geochemistry and Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic geochemistry studies on volcanic rocks from southwestern Chad basins have been done in the thesis for the first time. Detailed geochronological study using whole-rock K-Ar and Ar-Ar methods shows the mainly eruption ages of these volcanic rocks are Late Cretaceous- Paleogene. Volcanic rocks in the well Nere-1 and Figuier-1 from Doba basin are products of the Late Cretaceous which majority of the K-Ar (Ar-Ar) ages fall in the interval 95-75 Ma, whereas volcanic rocks in the well Ronier-1 from Bongor Basin and the Well Acacia-1 from Lake Chad Basin formed in the Paleogene which the ages concentrated in 66-52Ma. Two main periods of volcanic activity can be recognized in the study area, namely, the Late Cretaceous period and the Paleogene period. Volcanic activities have a general trend of south to north migration, but this may be only a local expression, and farther future studies should be carried on. Petrology study exhibits these volcanic rocks from southwestern Chad basins are mainly tholeiitic basalt. Major- and trace elements as well as Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic geochemistry studies show that the late Cretaceous and the Paleogene basalts have a definitely genetic relationship, and magmas which the basalts in southwestern Chad basins derived from were produced by fractional crystallization of olivine and clinopyroxene and had not do suffered from crustal contamination. These basalts are prominently enriched light rare earth elements (LREE), large-ion lithophile elements (LILE) and high field strength elements (HFSE) and depleted compatible elements. They have positive Ba, Pb, Sr, Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf anomalies and negative Th, U, P,Y anomalies. It is possible that the basalts from southwestern Chad basins mainly formed by mixing of depleted mantle (DM) and enriched mantle (EMⅡ) sources. The late Cretaceous basalts have higher (87Sr/86Sr)i ratios than the Paleogene basalts’, whereas have lower (143Nd/144Nd)i ratios than the latter, showing a significant temporal evolution. The mantle sources of the Late Cretaceous basalts may have more enriched mantle(EMⅡ) compositions, whereas those of the Paleogene basalts are relatively more asthenospheric mantle (DM) components. The mantle components with temporal change observed in basalts from Chad basins were probably correlated with the asthenospheric mantle upwelling and lithospheric thinning in Central and Western Africa since Mesozoic. Mesozoic- Cenozoic Volcanism in Chad basins probably is a product of intra- plate extensional stress regime, corresponded to the tectonic setting of the whole West and Central African during Cretaceous. Volcanism is closely correlated with rifting. As time passed from early period to late, the basaltic magma of Chad basins, characterized with shallower genetic depth, higher density and smaller viscosity, probably indicates the gradual strengthening evolution of the rifting. In the initial rife stage, volcanic activities are absent in the study area. Volcanic activities are basiccally corresponded with the strong extensional period of Chad basins, and the eruption of basalts was slightly lagged behind the extensional period. In the post-rift stage (30-0Ma), these basins shifted to the thermal sag phase, volcanic activities in the study area significantly decreased and then terminated.

贵州丹寨下、中寒武统界线划分

本研究是首次对贵州丹寨凯里组界线剖面界线层的沉积岩地球化学特征进行研究：分析沉积岩中的微量元素，探讨稀土元素分布模式及微量元素含量沿剖面变化的规律性，对沉积环境进行分析，结合古生物学者对界线剖面宏观生物组合和疑源类的研究所确定的划分定义，确定界线划分的地球化学划分方案，从而为丹寨下、中寒武统界线划分提供地球化学依据。并且根据对丹寨界线剖面下、中寒武统界线层化学事件研究结果，将界线置于3层－4层之间。