Knowledge Development: Cinema in China prior to WWI

This dissertation delineates cinema in China prior to WWI into five periods and interprets this section of history under references of up-to-date early film theories. The spreading of cinema is treated as a continuation of the lantern tradition, and is contextualized and conventionalized in the late Qing sociopolitical milieu. It synchronizes with the colonial process and Manchu government’s progressive reforms. The central argument here is that early cinema in China shows a developmental pattern, which bears a high similarity to Jean Piaget’s knowledge development, and is characteristic of intermediality and internationality. From a mechanic novelty to a mass medium, to a profitable commodity, although cinema in China begins as an attachment to other existing entertainments, after about two decades’ development its subjectivity has already been secured and an incipient film industry is formed in prewar era, featuring a strong foreign monopoly and regional imbalance

Educational Finance Practices: How Does It Work in China?

This study is focused on investigating the educational finance practices in China through the perceptions of educators in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, China. A convenience sampling method was used in collecting data from 57 teachers and 23 school administrators. A survey questionnaire was developed to contain 16 open-ended questions to cover the following areas of educational finance: sources of revenue, items of expenditure, budget process, auditing system and equity issues. Analysis of the data indicated that 60% of the educational revenues were generated by provincial taxes. Major education expenditure items include educational facilities and personnel employment with sizable disparity. Results also showed that educational budget and audit processes were primitive

Functional Characterization and Evolution of the Isotuberculosinol Operon in Mycobacterium Tuberculosis and Related Mycobacteria

Terpenoid metabolites are important to the cellular function, structural integrity, and pathogenesis of the human-specific pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Genetic and biochemical investigations have indicated a role for the diterpenoid isotuberculosinol (isoTb) early in the infection process. There are only two genes (Rv3377c and Rv3378c) required for production of isoTb, yet these are found in what appears to be a five-gene terpenoid/isoprenoid biosynthetic operon. Of the three remaining genes (Rv3379c, Rv3382c, and Rv3383c), previous work has indicated that Rv3379c is an inactive pseudo-gene. Here we demonstrate that Rv3382c and Rv3383c encode biochemically redundant machinery for isoprenoid metabolism, encoding a functional 4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate reductase (LytB) for isoprenoid precursor production and a geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) synthase, respectively, for which the Mtb genome contains other functional isozymes (Rv1110 and Rv0562, respectively). These results complete the characterization of the isoTb biosynthetic operon, as well as further elucidating isoprenoid metabolism in Mtb. In addition, we have investigated the evolutionary origin of this operon, revealing Mtb-specific conservation of the diterpene synthase genes responsible for isoTb biosynthesis, which supports our previously advanced hypothesis that isoTb acts as a human-specific pathogenic metabolite and is consistent with the human host specificity of Mtb. Intriguingly, our results revealed that many mycobacteria contain orthologs for both Rv3383c and Rv0562, suggesting a potentially important role for these functionally redundant GGPP synthases in the evolution of terpenoid/isoprenoid metabolism in the mycobacteria

Probing Labdane-Related Diterpenoid Biosynthesis in the Fungal Genus Aspergillus

While terpenoid production is generally associated with plants, a variety of fungi contain operons predicted to lead to such biosynthesis. Notably, fungi contain a number of cyclases characteristic of labdane-related diterpenoid metabolism, which have not been much explored. These also are often found near cytochrome P450 (CYP) mono-oxygenases that presumably further decorate the ensuing diterpene, suggesting that these fungi might produce more elaborate diterpenoids. To probe the functional diversity of such biosynthetic capacity, an investigation of the phylogenetically diverse cyclases and associated CYPs from the fungal genus Aspergillus was undertaken, revealing their ability to produce isopimaradiene-derived diterpenoids. Intriguingly, labdane-related diterpenoid biosynthetic genes are largely found in plant-associated fungi, hinting that these natural products may play a role in such interactions. Accordingly, it is hypothesized here that isopimarane production may assist the plant-saprophytic lifestyle of Aspergillus fungi

Optimization of recombinant expression enables discovery of novel cytochrome P450 activity in rice diterpenoid biosynthesis

The oxygenation reactions catalyzed by cytochromes P450 (CYPs) play critical roles in plant natural products biosynthesis. At the same time, CYPs are one of most challenging enzymes to functionally characterize due to the difficulty of recombinantly expressing these membrane-associated monooxygenases. In the course of investigating rice diterpenoid biosynthesis we have developed a synthetic biology approach for functional expression of relevant CYPs in Escherichia coli. In certain cases activity was observed for only one of two closely related paralogs although it seems clear that related reactions are required for production of the known diterpenoids. Here we report that optimization of the recombinant expression system enabled characterization of not only these previously recalcitrant CYPs, but also discovery of additional activity relevant to rice diterpenoid biosynthesis. Of particular interest, CYP701A8 was found to catalyze 3β-hydroxylation of syn-pimaradiene, which is presumably relevant to momilactone biosynthesis, while CYP71Z6 & 7 were found to catalyze multiple reactions, with CYP71Z6 catalyzing the production of 2α,3α-dihydroxy-ent-isokaurene via 2α-hydroxy- ent-isokaurene, and CYP71Z7 catalyzing the production of 3α-hydroxy-ent-cassadien-2- one via 2α-hydroxy-ent-cassadiene and ent-cassadien-2-one, which may be relevant to oryzadione and phytocassane biosynthesis, respectively

Biochemical characterization of the castor bean ent-kaurene synthase(-like) family supports quantum chemical view of diterpene cyclization

It has become apparent that plants have extensively diversified their arsenal of labdane-related diterpenoids (LRDs), in part via gene duplication and neo-functionalization of the ancestral entkaurene synthase (KS) required for gibberellin metabolism. For example, castor bean (Ricinus communis) was previously shown to produce an interesting set of biosynthetically related diterpenes, specifically ent-sandracopimaradiene, ent-beyerene, and ent-trachylobane, in addition to ent-kaurene, using four separate diterpene synthases, albeit these remain unidentified. Notably, despite mechanistic similarity of the underlying reaction to that catalyzed by KSs, ent-beyerene and ent-trachylobane synthases have not yet been identified. Given our interest in LRD biosynthesis, and the recent availability of the castor bean genome sequence, we applied a synthetic biology approach to biochemically characterize the four KS(-like) enzymes [KS(L)s] found in Ricinus communis [i.e., the RcKS(L)s]. In particular, using bacteria engineered to produce the relevant ent-copalyl diphosphate precursor and synthetic genes based on the predicted RcKS(L)s, although this ultimately required correction of a “splicing” error in one of the predicted genes, highlighting the dependence of such a synthetic biology approach on accurate gene sequences. Nevertheless, we can assign each of the four RcKS(L)s to one of the previously observed diterpene synthase activities, providing access to functionally novel enzymes. Intriguingly, the product distribution of the RcKS(L)s seems to support the distinct diterpene synthase reaction mechanism proposed by quantum chemical calculations, rather than the classically proposed pathway

Increasing Complexity of a Diterpene Synthase Reaction with a Single Residue Switch

Terpene synthases often catalyze complex reactions involving intricate series of carbocation intermediates. The resulting, generally cyclical, structures provide initial hydrocarbon frameworks that underlie the astonishing structural diversity of the enormous class of terpenoid natural products (\u3e50,000 known), and these enzymes often mediate the committed step in their particular biosynthetic pathway. Accordingly, how terpene synthases specify product outcome has drawn a great deal of attention. In previous work, we have shown that mutational introduction of a hydroxyl group at specific positions within diterpene synthase active sites can short circuit complex cyclization and/or rearrangement reactions, resulting in the production of simpler \u27 diterpenes. Here we demonstrate that the converse change, substitution of an Ile for Thr at the relevant position in a native pimaradiene synthase, leads to a dramatic increase in reaction complexity. Product outcome is shifted from the tricyclic pimaradiene to a rearranged tetracycle, aphidicol-15-ene. Thus, the nature of the residue at this position acts as a true switch for product outcome. In addition, the ability of aliphatic residue substitution to enable a more complex reaction emphasizes the importance of substrate conformation imposed by a largely inert active site. Furthermore, the profound plasticity of diterpene synthases exemplified by this single residue switch for product outcome is consistent with the screening/diversity-oriented hypothesis of natural products metabolism

Effect of Isotopically Sensitive Branching on Product Distribution for Pentalenene Synthase: Support for a Mechanism Predicted by Quantum Chemistry

Mechanistic proposals for the carbocation cascade reaction leading to the tricyclic sesquiterpene pentalenene are assessed in light of the results of isotopically sensitive branching experiments with the H309A mutant of pentalenene synthase. These experimental results support a mechanism for pentalenene formation involving a 7-protoilludyl cation whose intermediacy was first predicted using quantum-chemical calculations

Characterization and Inhibition of a Class II Diterpene Cyclase from Mycobacterium tuberculosis: Implications for tuberculosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis remains a widespread and devastating human pathogen, whose ability to infiltrate macrophage host cells from the human immune system is an active area of investigation. We have recently reported the discovery of a novel diterpene from M. tuberculosis, edaxadiene, whose ability to arrest phagosomal maturation in isolation presumably contributes to this critical process in M. tuberculosis infections. (Mann, F. M., Xu, M., Chen, X., Fulton, D. B., Russell, D. G., and Peters, R. J. (2009) J. Am. Chem. Soc., in press). Here, we present characterization of the class II diterpene cyclase that catalyzes the committed step in edaxadiene biosynthesis, i.e. the previously identified halimadienyl-diphosphate synthase (HPS; EC 5.5.1.16). Intriguingly, our kinetic analysis suggests a potential biochemical regulatory mechanism that triggers edaxadiene production upon phagosomal engulfment. Furthermore, we report characterization of potential HPS inhibitors: specifically, two related transition state analogs (15-aza-14,15-dihydrogeranylgeranyl diphosphate (7a) and 15-aza-14,15-dihydrogeranylgeranyl thiolodiphosphate (7b)) that exhibit very tight binding. Although arguably not suitable for clinical use, these nevertheless provide a basis for pharmaceutical design against this intriguing biosynthetic pathway. Finally, we provide evidence indicating that this pathway exists only in M. tuberculosis and is not functional in the closely related Mycobacterium bovis because of an inactivating frameshift in the HPS-encoding gene. Thus, we hypothesize that the inability to produce edaxadiene may be a contributing factor in the decreased infectivity and/or virulence of M. bovis relative to M. tuberculosis in humans