Cloning, Expression, and Characterization of Thermostable Manganese Superoxide Dismutase from Thermoascus aurantiacus var. levisporus

Ning-Ning Song,Yan Zheng,Shi-Jin E,Duo-Chuan Li 한국미생물학회 2009 The journal of microbiology Vol.47 No.1

A superoxide dismutase (SOD) gene of Thermoascus aurantiacus var. levisporus, a thermophilic fungus, was cloned, sequenced, and expressed in Pichia pastoris and its gene product was characterized. The coding sequence predicted a 231 residues protein with a unique 35 amino acids extension at the N-terminus indicating a mitochondrial-targeting sequence. The content of Mn was 2.46 µg/mg of protein and Fe was not detected in the purified enzyme. The enzyme was found to be inhibited by NaN3, but not by KCN or H2O2. These results suggested that the SOD in Thermoascus aurantiacus var. levisporus was the manganese superoxide dismutase type. In comparison with other MnSODs, all manganese-binding sites were also conserved in the sequence (H88, H136, D222, H226). The molecular mass of a single band of the enzyme was estimated to be 21.7 kDa. The protein was expressed in tetramer form with molecular weight of 68.0 kDa. The activity of purified protein was 2,324 U/mg. The optimum temperature of the enzyme was 55°C and it exhibited maximal activity at pH 7.5. The enzyme was thermostable at 50 and 60°C and the half-life at 80°C was approximately 40 min.

Research on the Relationship Between Serum Levels of Inflammatory Cytokines and Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Song, Xiao-Yun,Zhou, Shi-Jie,Xiao, Ning,Li, Yun-Song,Zhen, De-Zhi,Su, Chong-Yu,Liu, Zhi-Dong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.8

Aims: This study was conducted to evaluate the levels of TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-6, IL-8 and VEGF in serum of patients with non- small cell lung cancer, for assessing their possible diagnostic and prognostic roles. Methods: We enrolled 48 patients newly diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer and 40 healthy controls. TNF- ${\alpha}$, IL-6 and IL-8 levels were measured in the serum of all the subjects with specific radioimmunoassay kits, while EGF was analyzed by sandwich enzyme immunoassay techniques. Results: A statistically significant difference was observed between lung cancer patients and the control group regarding the values of TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-6, IL-8 and VEGF in serum. Moreover, TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-8 and VEGF levels were higher in patients with advanced stages compared to early stages. In addition, higher serum levels of TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-6, IL-8 and VEGF were found in smokers than in non-smokers, both in patients and controls. Conclusion: Serum levels of TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-6, IL-8 and VEGF were all elevated in lung cancer patients, suggesting that inflammatory cytokines could be jointly used as a screening tool. Though TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-8 and VEGF levels were related to advanced disease, long-term survival studies of NSCLC patients should be performed to confirm whether they can act as biomarkers of advanced disease. In addition, smoking would be an important contributor to the processes of inflammation and lung cancer.

miR-380-3p promotes β-casein expression by targeting α_S1-casein in goat mammary epithelial cells

Ning Song,Jun Luo,Lian Huang,Xiaoying Chen,Huimin Niu,Lu Zhu Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2023 Animal Bioscience Vol.36 No.10

Objective: α_S1-Casein is more closely associated with milk allergic reaction than other milk protein components. microRNA (miRNA) is a class of small non-coding RNAs that modulate multiple biological progresses by the target gene. However, the post-transcriptional regulation of α_S1-casein expression by miRNA in ruminants remains unclear. This study aims to explore the regulatory roles of miR-380-3p on α_S1-casein synthesis in goat mammary epithelial cells (GMEC). Methods: α_S1-Casein gene and miR-380-3p expression was measured in dairy goat mammary gland by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). miR-380-3p overexpression and knockdown were performed by miR-380-3p mimic or inhibitor in GMEC. The effect of miR-380-3p on α_S1-casein synthesis was detected by qRT-PCR, western blot, luciferase and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays in GMEC. Results: Compared with middle-lactation period, α_S1-casein gene expression is increased, while miR-380-3p expression is decreased during peak-lactation of dairy goats. miR-380-3p reduces α_S1-casein abundance by targeting the 3'-untranslated region (3'UTR) of α_S1-casein mRNA in GMEC. miR-380-3p enhances β-casein expression and signal transducer and activator of transcription 5a (STAT5a) activity. Moreover, miR-380-3p promotes β-casein abundance through target gene α_S1-casein, and activates β-casein transcription by enhancing the binding of STAT5 to β-casein gene promoter region. Conclusion: miR-380-3p decreases α_S1-casein expression and increases β-casein expression by targeting α_S1-casein in GMEC, which supplies a novel strategy for reducing milk allergic potential and building up milk quality in ruminants.

Synthesis and Characterization of KTiNbO5 Nano-particles by Novel Polymerizable Complex Method

Ning-ning Wang,Yun-xiang Lan,Jie He,Rui Dong,Jin-song Hu 대한화학회 2013 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.34 No.9

The layered KTiNbO5 was successfully synthesized with titanium(IV) isopropoxide and niobium oxalate by a novel polymerized complex (PC) method. The morphology and structure of the as-prepared sample was characterized by means of High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope, powder X-ray diffraction, and Laser Raman Spectroscopy. The spectral response characteristic was recorded by using UV-vis Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy. Results show that KTiNbO5 as-prepared by PC method presents an uniform morphology of nano-particles, the mean particle sizes is ca. 28 nm corresponding to the (002), and the crystal structure can be well indexed to the orthorhombic phase. The sample as-prepared by PC method has higher band gap energy than that of the sample prepared by a solid-state reaction method due to the quantum size effect.

Synthesis and Characterization of KTiNbO₅ Nano-particles by Novel Polymerizable Complex Method

Wang, Ning-Ning,Lan, Yun-Xiang,He, Jie,Dong, Rui,Hu, Jin-Song Korean Chemical Society 2013 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.34 No.9

The layered $KTiNbO_5$ was successfully synthesized with titanium(IV) isopropoxide and niobium oxalate by a novel polymerized complex (PC) method. The morphology and structure of the as-prepared sample was characterized by means of High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope, powder X-ray diffraction, and Laser Raman Spectroscopy. The spectral response characteristic was recorded by using UV-vis Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy. Results show that $KTiNbO_5$ as-prepared by PC method presents an uniform morphology of nano-particles, the mean particle sizes is ca. 28 nm corresponding to the (002), and the crystal structure can be well indexed to the orthorhombic phase. The sample as-prepared by PC method has higher band gap energy than that of the sample prepared by a solid-state reaction method due to the quantum size effect.

Antifungal Effect of Triglycerol Monolaurate Synthesized by Lipozyme 435-Mediated Esterification

Song Zhang,Jian Xiong,Wen-Yong Lou,Zhengxiang Ning,Denghui Zhang,Jiguo Yang 한국미생물·생명공학회 2020 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.30 No.4

This study was designed to synthesize triglycerol monolaurate (TGML) with Lipozyme 435 as the catalyst, and explore its effects on the growth of Aspergillus parasiticus (A. parasiticus) and Aspergillus flavus (A. flavus) and the secretion of aflatoxin b1. The highest content of TGML (49.76%) was obtained at a molar ratio of triglycerol to lauric acid of 1.08, a reaction temperature of 84.93°C, a reaction time of 6 h and an enzyme dosage of 1.32%. After purification by molecular distillation combined with the washes with ethyl acetate and water, the purity of TGML reached 98.3%. Through characterization by electrospray-ionization mass spectrometry, infrared spectrum and nuclear magnetic resonance, the structure of TGML was identified as a linear triglycerol combined with lauroyl at the end. Finally, the inhibitory effects of TGML on the growths of A. parasiticus and A. flavus and the secretion of aflatoxin b1 were evaluated by measuring the colony diameter, the inhibition rate of mycelial growth and the content of mycotoxin in the media. The results indicated that TGML had a stronger inhibitory effects on colony growth and mycelial development of both toxic molds compared to sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate, and the secretions of toxins from A. parasiticus and A. flavus were completely suppressed when adding TGML at 10 and 5 mM, respectively. Based on the above results, TGML may be used as a substitute for traditional antifungal agents in the food industry.

Design and control of a proof-of-concept active jet engine intake using shape memory alloy actuators

Song, Gangbing,Ma, Ning,Li, Luyu,Penney, Nick,Barr, Todd,Lee, Ho-Jun,Arnold, Steve Techno-Press 2011 Smart Structures and Systems, An International Jou Vol.7 No.1

It has been shown in the literature that active adjustment of the intake area of a jet engine has potential to improve its fuel efficiency. This paper presents the design and control of a novel proof-of-concept active jet engine intake using Nickel-Titanium (Ni-Ti or Nitinol) shape memory alloy (SMA) wire actuators. The Nitinol SMA material is used in this research due to its advantages of high power-to-weight ratio and electrical resistive actuation. The Nitinol SMA material can be fabricated into a variety of shapes, such as strips, foils, rods and wires. In this paper, SMA wires are used due to its ability to generate a large strain: up to 6% for repeated operations. The proposed proof-of-concept engine intake employs overlapping leaves in a concentric configuration. Each leaf is mounted on a supporting bar than can rotate. The supporting bars are actuated by an SMA wire actuator in a ring configuration. Electrical resistive heating is used to actuate the SMA wire actuator and rotate the supporting bars. To enable feedback control, a laser range sensor is used to detect the movement of a leaf and therefore the radius of the intake area. Due to the hysteresis, an inherent nonlinear phenomenon associated with SMAs, a nonlinear robust controller is used to control the SMA actuators. The control design uses the sliding-mode approach and can compensate the nonlinearities associated with the SMA actuator. A proof-of-concept model is fabricated and its feedback control experiments show that the intake area can be precisely controlled using the SMA wire actuator and has the ability to reduce the area up to 25%. The experiments demonstrate the feasibility of engine intake area control using an SMA wire actuator under the proposed design.

Identifying genes for resistant starch, slowly digestible starch, and rapidly digestible starch in rice using genome-wide association studies

Ning Zhang,Maike Wang,Ji Fu,Yi Shen,Yi Ding,Dianxing Wu,Xiaoli Shu,Wenjian Song 한국유전학회 2020 Genes & Genomics Vol.42 No.11

Background The digestibility of starch is important for the nutritive value of staple food. Although several genes are responsible for resistant starch (RS) and slowly digestible starch (SDS), gaps persist concerning the molecular basis of RS and SDS formation due to the complex genetic mechanisms of starch digestibility. Objectives The objective of this study was to identify new genes for starch digestibility in rice and interprete the genetic mechanisms of RS and SDS by GWAS. Methods Genome-wide association studies were conducted by associating the RS and SDS phenotypes of 104 re-sequenced rice lines to an SNP dataset of 2,288,867 sites using a compressed mixed linear model. Candidate genes were identifed according to the position of the SNPs based on data from the MSU Rice Genome Annotation Project. Results Seven quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were detected to be associated with the RS content, among which the SNP 6 m1765761 was located on Waxy. Starch branching enzymes IIa (BEIIa) close to QTL qRS-I4 was detected and further identifed as a specifc candidate gene for RS in INDICA. Two QTLs were associated with SDS, and the LOC_Os09g09360 encoding lipase was identifed as a causal gene for SDS. Conclusions GWAS is a valid strategy to genetically dissect the formation of starch digestion properties in rice. RS formation in grains is dependent on the rice type; lipid might also contribute to starch digestibility and should be an alternative factor to improve rice starch digestibility.

Design and Implementation of a Miniature Intelligent Vehicle Test Platform

Ning Li,Guangming Xiong,Weilong Song,Jianwei Gong,Huiyan Chen 보안공학연구지원센터 2013 International Journal of Smart Home Vol.7 No.5

Chromatic Characteristics and Anthocyanin Compositions of Cabernet Sauvignon Wines: Influence of Indigenous Saccharomyces cerevisiae Strains in Ningxia, China

Ning Liu,Yu-Yang Song,Yi Qin,Xue Gong,Yan-Lin Liu 한국식품과학회 2015 Food Science and Biotechnology Vol.24 No.6

Eight Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains were used for preparation of Cabernet Sauvignon musts from Yuma vineyard in China, where the strains were isolated, to study the importance of yeast strain for optimization of Cabernet Sauvignon wine color and anthocyanin composition. Differences in chromatic characteristics between indigenous yeast strains and a commercial F15 control were not found. Twenty-one anthocyanins were detected and quantified using HPLC-MS. Concentrations of anthocyanins were significantly (p<0.05) influenced by the yeast strain used. Use of the commercial F15 yeast resulted in the highest anthocyanin concentration. Among 9 pyranoanthocyanins detected, amounts of must were influenced by the yeast strain used. The color of wine produced using the N11424 yeast was more stable because of a higher pyranoanthocyanin concentration. Use of Principal Component Analysis indicated that indigenous yeast treatments were separated from the F15 control yeast treatment based on anthocyanin components.