ABSTRACT
Musclin is a muscle-derived secretory peptide that induces insulin resistance in vitro. We studied the effect of musclin (0.5 microg/ml) on insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in rat skeletal muscles and also the effect of rosiglitazone (0.4 microg/ml). Preincubation of muscles with musclin resulted in decreased insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. Musclin also reduced expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) and liver X receptor alpha (LXRalpha) mRNAs, although expression of glucose transporter 4 mRNA was unaltered. Rosiglitazone attenuated the effects of musclin on glucose uptake and PPARgamma and LXRalpha mRNA expression. Western blotting demonstrated that activation of protein kinase B (Akt/PKB) in the insulin-signalling cascade was decreased by musclin but corrected by rosiglitazone. These findings suggest that musclin-induced impairment of insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in skeletal muscle is related to Akt/PKB inhibition and might be modulated by PPARgamma/LXRalpha.
Subject(s)
Insulin/pharmacology , Muscle Proteins/pharmacology , Muscle, Skeletal/drug effects , Muscle, Skeletal/enzymology , Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt/metabolism , Animals , Blotting, Western , Densitometry , Enzyme Activation/drug effects , Gene Expression Regulation/drug effects , Glucose/metabolism , In Vitro Techniques , Male , Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt/genetics , RNA, Messenger/genetics , RNA, Messenger/metabolism , Rats , Rats, Sprague-DawleyABSTRACT
Genetic analysis and fine mapping of a resistance gene against brown planthopper (BPH) biotype 2 in rice was performed using two F(2) populations derived from two crosses between a resistant indica cultivar (cv.), AS20-1, and two susceptible japonica cvs., Aichi Asahi and Lijiangxintuanheigu. Insect resistance was evaluated using F(1) plants and the two F(2) populations. The results showed that a single recessive gene, tentatively designated as bph19(t), conditioned the resistance in AS20-1. A linkage analysis, mainly employing microsatellite markers, was carried out in the two F(2) populations through bulked segregant analysis and recessive class analysis (RCA), in combination with bioinformatics analysis (BIA). The resistance gene locus bph19(t) was finely mapped to a region of about 1.0 cM on the short arm of chromosome 3, flanked by markers RM6308 and RM3134, where one known marker RM1022, and four new markers, b1, b2, b3 and b4, developed in the present study were co-segregating with the locus. To physically map this locus, the bph19(t)-linked markers were landed on bacterial artificial chromosome or P1 artificial chromosome clones of the reference cv., Nipponbare, released by the International Rice Genome Sequencing Project. Sequence information of these clones was used to construct a physical map of the bph19(t) locus, in silico, by BIA. The bph19(t) locus was physically defined to an interval of about 60 kb. The detailed genetic and physical maps of the bph19(t) locus will facilitate marker-assisted gene pyramiding and cloning.
Subject(s)
Chromosomes, Plant , Genes, Plant , Hemiptera/physiology , Oryza/physiology , Animals , Chromosome Mapping , Genes, Recessive , Genetic Linkage , Genetic Markers , Oryza/geneticsABSTRACT
The Hamiltonian and the wave function in the Davydov theory have simultaneously been improved and extended, based on some physical and biological grounds and on results from other models. The equations of motion for the improved Davydov model with a quasicoherent two-quanta state and a new interaction term in the Hamiltonian describe bioenergy transport along the molecular chains in protein molecules by a soliton mechanism. Some elementary properties of the soliton, including the nonlinear coupling energy and greatly increased binding energy of the soliton, are also given. The results obtained suggest that the model could be a candidate for a bioenergy transport mechanism in protein molecules.
