How Society Anxiety Influences Attention Control in College Students: The Moderated Mediation Effect of Cognitive Flexibility and Resting-state Electroencephalography Activity.

Social anxiety is a prevalent issue among college students, adversely affecting their overall well-being. Drawing from the cognitive model of social anxiety and attention control theory, heightened levels of social anxiety may correspond to poorer attention control ability. However, little is known about the underlying cognitive mechanisms of the relationship between social anxiety and attention control. To address this research gap, the current study recruited a sample of 156 college students (56 women) who underwent self-report measures of social anxiety, cognitive flexibility, and attention control, followed by a resting-state EEG recording. The results revealed a significant negative predictive effect of social anxiety on attention control, with cognitive flexibility partially mediating this relationship. Furthermore, resting-state theta power emerged as a significant moderator, accentuating the negative impact of social anxiety on cognitive flexibility among individuals with lower theta power. In addition, frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) demonstrated a moderating effect, with lower FAA intensifying the predictive influence of cognitive flexibility on attention control. Taken together, these results suggested that social anxiety can predict attention control either directly or indirectly via the mediating role of cognitive flexibility, and lower theta power and FAA has a risk amplification effect, which provide novel insights into the treatment and prevention of social anxiety and its negative impact on college students.

A Bispecific Chimeric Aptamer Design Platform Based on c-MET Aptamer with a Replaceable Redundant Region.

Molecular engineering enables the creation of aptamers with novel functions, but the prerequisite is a deep understanding of their structure and recognition mechanism. The cellular-mesenchymal epithelial transition factor (c-MET) is garnering significant attention due to the critical role of the c-MET/HGF signaling pathway in tumor development and invasion. This study reports a strategy for constructing novel chimeric aptamers that bind to both c-MET and other specific proteins. c-MET was identified to be the molecular target of a DNA aptamer, HF3-58, selected through cell-SELEX. The binding structure and mechanism of HF3-58 with c-MET were systematically studied, revealing the scaffold, recognition, and redundancy regions. Through molecular engineering design, the redundancy region was replaced with other aptamers possessing stem-loop structures, yielding novel chimeric aptamers with bispecificity for binding to c-MET and specific proteins. A chimeric bispecific aptamer HF-3b showed the ability to mediate the adhesion of T-cells to tumor cells, suggesting the prospective utility in tumor immunotherapy. These findings suggest that aptamer HF3-58 can serve as a molecular engineering platform for the development of diverse multifunctional ligands targeting c-MET. Moreover, comprehensive understanding of the binding mechanisms of aptamers will provide guidance for the design of functional aptamers, significantly expanding their potential applications.

Chlorogenic acid can improve spermatogenic dysfunction in rats with varicocele by regulating mitochondrial homeostasis and inhibiting the activation of NLRP3 inflammasomes by oxidative mitochondrial DNA and cGAS/STING pathway.

In recent years, Varicocele (VC) has been recognized as a common cause of male infertility that can be treated by surgery or drugs. How to reduce the damage of VC to testicular spermatogenic function has attracted extensive attention in recent years. Among them, overexpressed ROS and high levels of inflammation may play a key role in VC-induced testicular damage. As the key mediated innate immune pathways, cGAS-STING shaft under pathological conditions, such as in cell and tissue damage stress can be cytoplasmic DNA activation, induce the activation of NLRP3 inflammatory corpuscle, triggering downstream of the inflammatory cascade reaction. Chlorogenic acid (CGA), as a natural compound from a wide range of sources, has strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities, and is a potential effective drug for the treatment of varicocele infertility. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of CGA in the spermatogenic dysfunction of the rat testis induced by VC and the potential mechanisms. The results of this study have shown that CGA gavage treatment ameliorated the pathological damage of seminiferous tubules, increased the number of sperm in the lumen, and increased the expression levels of Occludin and ZO-1, which indicated the therapeutic effect of CGA on spermatogenic dysfunction in the testis of VC rats. Meanwhile, the damage of mitochondrial structure was alleviated and the expression levels of ROS, NLRP3 and pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-18) were significantly reduced in the testicular tissues of model rats after CGA treatment. In addition, we demonstrated for the first time the high expression status of cGAS and STING in testicular tissues of VC model rats, and this was ameliorated to varying degrees after CGA treatment. In conclusion, this study suggests that CGA can improve the spermatogenic function of the testis by reducing mitochondrial damage and inhibiting the activation of the cGAS-STING axis, inhibiting the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, and improving the inflammatory damage of the testis, highlighting the potential of CGA as a therapeutic agent for varicocele infertility.

Ursolic acid alleviates chronic prostatitis via regulating NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated Caspase-1/GSDMD pyroptosis pathway.

Ursolic acid (UA) is a naturally occurring pentacyclic triterpenoid widely found in fruits and vegetables. It has been reported that UA has anti-inflammatory effects. However, its efficacy and mechanism of action in the treatment of chronic prostatitis (CP) remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of UA treatment in CP and further explore the underlying mechanism. CP rat and pyroptosis cell models were established in vivo and in vitro, respectively. The efficacy of UA in inhibiting CP was evaluated via haematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining and measurement of inflammatory cytokines. RNA sequencing and molecular docking were used to predict the therapeutic targets of UA in CP. The expression of pyroptosis-related proteins was examined using various techniques, including immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, and flow cytometry. UA significantly ameliorated pathological damage and reduced the levels of proinflammatory cytokines in the CP model rats. RNA sequencing analysis and molecular docking suggested that NLRP3, Caspase-1, and GSDMD may be key targets. We also found that UA decreased ROS levels, alleviated oxidative stress, and inhibited p-NF-κB protein expression both in vivo and in vitro. UA improved pyroptosis morphology as indicated by electron microscope and inhibited the expression of the pyroptosis-related proteins NLRP3, Caspase-1, ASC, and GSDMD, reversed the levels of IL-1ß, IL-18, and lactate dehydrogenase in vivo and in vitro. UA can mitigate CP by regulating the NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated Caspase-1/GSDMD pathway. Therefore, UA may be a potential for the treatment of CP.

The development of Tibetan children's racial bias in empathy: The mediating role of ethnic identity and wrongfulness of ethnic intergroup bias.

OBJECTIVES: Individuals often automatically have more empathy for same-race members. However, there are no studies on racial bias in empathy (RBE) among Tibetan school-aged children. The present study aimed to examine the development of RBEs, including racial bias in cognitive empathy, affective empathy, and behavioral empathy, in Tibetan school-aged children. METHOD: In Experiment 1 (N = 108, aged 7-12), ethnic identity was primed using Tibetan and Han names. Then negative and neutral events were applied to measure the RBEs of Tibetan children. In Experiment 2 (N = 148, aged 7-12), negative events were replaced by pain events. In Experiment 3 (N = 60, aged 7-12), Tibetan children's ethnic identity and the awareness of the wrongfulness of ethnic intergroup bias were added to examine the underlying mechanism. RESULT: Results found that RBEs increased among Tibetan children aged 7-10 and decreased among those aged 11-12, Moreover, we analyzed age as a continuous variable and found that 10 years old was the inflection point in the development of RBEs in Tibetan children. Importantly, children aged 11-12 years old realized more wrongfulness of ethnic intergroup bias than children aged 7-10. The ethnic identity of Tibetan children aged 7-10 mediated the relation between age group and RBEs. And the wrongfulness of ethnic intergroup bias mediated the link between age group and RBEs in Tibetan children aged 9-12. CONCLUSION: Our study sheds light on the development of RBEs in Tibetan school-aged children and highlights the importance of identifying the appropriate timing for intervening in prejudice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Long-term residue returning increased subsoil carbon quality in a rice-wheat cropping system.

Residue returning (RR) was widely implemented to increase soil organic carbon (SOC) in farmland. Extensive studies concentrated on the effects of RR on SOC quantity instead of SOC fractions at aggregate scales. This study investigated the effects of 20-year RR on the distribution of labile (e.g., dissolved, microbial biomass, and permanganate oxidizable organic) and stable (e.g., microbial necromass) carbon fractions at aggregate scales, as well as their contribution to SOC accumulation and mineralization. The findings indicated a synchronized variation in the carbon content of bacterial and fungal necromass. Residue retention (RR) notably elevated the concentration of bacterial and fungal necromass carbon, while it did not amplify the microbial necromass carbon (MNC) contribution to SOC when compared to residue removal (R0) in the topsoil (0-5 cm). In the subsoil (5-15 cm), RR increased the MNC contribution to SOC concentration by 21.2%-33.4% and mitigated SOC mineralization by 12.6% in micro-aggregates (P < 0.05). Besides, RR increased soil ß-glucosidase and peroxidase activities but decreased soil phenol oxidase activity in micro-aggregates (P < 0.05). These indicated that RR might accelerate cellulose degradation and conversion to stable microbial necromass C, and thus RR improved SOC stability because SOC occluded in micro-aggregates were more stable. Interestingly, SOC concentration was mainly regulated by MNC, while SOC mineralization was by dissolved organic carbon under RR, both of which were affected by soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus associated nutrients and enzyme activities. The findings of this study emphasize that the paths of RR-induced SOC accumulation and mineralization were different, and depended on stable and labile C, respectively. Overall, long-term RR increased topsoil carbon quantity and subsoil carbon quality.

DNA Aptamer Binding Octapeptide Repeat Region of Cellular Prion Protein.

Cellular prion protein (PrPC) is highly expressed in a variety of tumor cells and plays a crucial role in neurodegenerative diseases. Its N-terminal domain contains a conserved octapeptide (PHGGGWGQ) repeat sequence. The number of repeats has been correlated with the species as well as the development of associated diseases. Herein, PrPC was identified to be the molecular target of a high-affinity DNA aptamer HA5-68 obtained by cell-SELEX. Aptamer HA5-68 was further optimized to two short sequences (HA5-40-1 and HA5-40-2), and its binding site to PrPC was identified to be located in the loop-stem-loop region of the head of its secondary structure. HA5 series aptamers were demonstrated to bind the octapeptide repeat region of PrPC, as well as the synthesized peptides containing different numbers of octapeptide repeats. The PrPC expression on 42 cell lines was measured by using aptamer HA5-68 as a molecular probe. The clear understanding of the molecular structure and binding mechanism of this set of aptamers will provide information for the design of diagnostic methods and therapeutic drugs targeting PrPC.

Cybervictimization and nonsuicidal self-injury: The mediating role of depressive symptoms and the moderating role of emotional reactivity.

BACKGROUND: Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) has garnered growing attention in recent years, and cybervictimization (CV) has been identified as a risk factor for NSSI among adolescents. However, little is known about this association's longitudinal mediating and moderating mechanisms. Guided by the experiential avoidance model, the present study used a short longitudinal design to examine the mediating role of depressive symptoms and the moderating role of emotional reactivity between CV and NSSI. METHODS: A total of 577 Chinese middle school students (Mage = 14.38, SD = 0.67) completed the measures of CV, NSSI, depressive symptoms, and emotional reactivity. They provided data in two waves (T1 and T2, 6 months apart). RESULTS: The results found a longitudinal association between CV and NSSI as well as the mediating role of depressive symptoms. Moreover, emotional reactivity amplified the relationship between CV and NSSI via depressive symptoms; specifically, the relationship between depressive symptoms and NSSI was only significant for adolescents with high emotional reactivity. CONCLUSION: The current study has found that emotional reactivity moderated the indirect effect of depressive symptoms on the relationship between CV and NSSI. These findings have implications for the identification and intervention of NSSI in early adolescents.

Structural Optimization and Interaction Study of a DNA Aptamer to L1 Cell Adhesion Molecule.

The L1 cell adhesion molecule (L1CAM) plays important roles in the development and plasticity of the nervous system as well as in tumor formation, progression, and metastasis. New ligands are necessary tools for biomedical research and the detection of L1CAM. Here, DNA aptamer yly12 against L1CAM was optimized to have much stronger binding affinity (10-24 fold) at room temperature and 37 °C via sequence mutation and extension. This interaction study revealed that the optimized aptamers (yly20 and yly21) adopted a hairpin structure containing two loops and two stems. The key nucleotides for aptamer binding mainly located in loop I and its adjacent area. Stem I mainly played the role of stabilizing the binding structure. The yly-series aptamers were demonstrated to bind the Ig6 domain of L1CAM. This study reveals a detailed molecular mechanism for the interaction between yly-series aptamers and L1CAM and provides guidance for drug development and detection probe design against L1CAM.

Sustainability assessment on paddy-upland crop rotations by carbon, nitrogen and water footprint integrated analysis: A field scale investigation.

Nutrients of carbon, nitrogen and water of farmland ecosystem are essential foundation to guarantee crop production, but also environmental flows associated greenhouse gas (GHG), reactive nitrogen (Nr) releases, and water consumption. Their flow characteristics serve as a crucial starting point for creating efficient management practices and mitigation measures. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to quantify the carbon footprint (CF), nitrogen footprint (NF), water footprint (WF), and comprehensive environmental footprint (ComF) of six paddy-upland rotation systems, including fallow-paddy rice (FA-PR), Chinese milk vetch-paddy rice (CMV-PR), wheat-paddy rice (WH-PR), rapeseed-paddy rice (RA-PR), green forage wheat-paddy rice (WF-PR), and vicia faba bean-paddy rice (FB-PR), as well as to analysis their relationships and define driving factors. Results showed that the lowest area-scaled CF of 3.74 t CO2-eq ha-1 were observed in the CMV-PR rotation, which were 41% lower than that for WH-PR (the highest CF, 9.13 t CO2-eq ha-1) when soil carbon change was taken into account. It is of importance that soil carbon sequestration in CMV-PR rotation could offset up to around 57% of its CF, while the WH-PR rotation only offset 25%. The RA-PR rotation had the highest area-scaled NF and WF, which was 1.8 and 1.9 times greater than those of the lowest rotation in FA-PR. In terms of comprehensive environmental effects, the six rotation systems showed the order of FA-PR < CMV-PR < FB-PR < RA-PR < WF-PR < WH-PR, with NH3 volatilization accounting 60.7%-66.7% and blue-green WF for 17.5%-26.6% of the total. Therefore, priority should be given to optimizing N fertilizer application and water consumption for paddy-upland rotation systems. The study also suggested that appropriate inter-annual adjustment of rotation system could contribute to achieving GHG mitigations and Nr losses.

Research trends and hotspots of recurrent pregnancy loss with thrombophilia: a bibliometric analysis.

BACKGROUND: Thrombophilia is a group of disorders that result in a blood hypercoagulable state and induce thrombosis, which was found widely existed in recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL). More and more research about thrombophilia has been conducted but the association between thrombophilia and RPL remains uncertain. Thus, it's necessary to combine relevant literature to find the research hotspots and analyze the internal link between different study points, and then predict the development trend in RPL with thrombophilia. METHODS: Relevant articles between 1970 and 2022 were obtained from the Web of Science (WoS) database. Software VOSviewer and CiteSpace were used to perform the analysis and conduct visualization of scientific productivity and emerging trends. RESULTS: Seven hundred twenty-five articles published in recent 30 years by 3205 authors from 1139 organizations and 68 countries were analyzed. 37authors, 38 countries, and 53 organizations published papers ≥5. The United States was the most productive country and Univ Amsterdam was the most productive institution. Journal thrombosis and haemostasis had the most total citations. In keyword and clusters, factor-v-Leiden, inherited thrombophilia, activated protein-c, low-dose aspirin, molecular-weigh heparin, polymorphism had high-frequency focus on its etiology, diagnostics, and therapeutics. The strongest keyword bursts showed the research hotspots changed over time. CONCLUSIONS: There could be differences in the clinical relevance of different type of thrombophilia, as well as single and multiple thrombophilic factors. Anticoagulation and immunotherapy are currently the main treatment options. More clinical trials and basic research are expected and we should attach more attention to the whole management of in-vitro fertilization in the future.

Quality assessment and relevant clinical impact of randomized controlled trials on chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS). METHODS: We searched PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase for RCTs (original articles) on CP/CPPS published from database establishment to 2021. The RCT quality assessment was performed using the Consolidated Standards of Reporting of Trials (CONSORT) statement and the improved Jadad scale. RESULTS: In total, 77 RCTs were included. According to the evaluation, 26 (33.77%) papers presented the description of the specific random methods, only 6 (7.79%) papers described the allocation concealment methods, and 26 (33.77%) articles referred to the "blind method". Of the RCTs, 34 (44.16%) papers recorded the number of patients who withdrew from the study, and 67 (87.01%) papers reported adverse reactions. However, few reports mentioned the sample size calculation, clinical trial registration, or information about the relevant research programs and funding. In addition, 19 (24.68%) reports had Jadad scale scores of ≥ 4 points, and 58 (75.32%) reports had Jadad scale scores of ≤ 3 points. CONCLUSION: To date, the quality of RCT reports on CP/CPPS needs to be further improved, and the results of the RCTs should be accepted and utilized cautiously. It is suggested that researchers should follow the CONSORT statement and the improved Jadad scale to standardize the design and implementation of RCTs to improve the quality of RCTs and provide reliable evidence for the treatment of CP/CPPS.

First Report of flower rot Caused by Fusarium spp. on White kiwifruit in China.

As an important cultivated germplasm, cultivar 'White' (Actinidia eriantha) is appreciated by kiwifruit breeders because of its long shelf life, richness in ascorbic acid and peelable skin. In May 2020, about 1% to 3% of cultivated 'White' plants displayed typical symptoms of flower rot at farms in Hefei (117°25'E, 31°86'N) and Lujiang (117°27'E, 31°48'N), Anhui Province of China (Fig.1a&b). The infected flowers were yellowish at first, gradually turned brown, withered and shrunk, and finally died without blossoming. Infected flowers were surface sterilized in 70% alcohol for 30 s and 1% NaOCl for 3 min, then washed with double distilled water (ddH2O) for 5 times, and finally incubated in potato dextrose agar at 25 ± 2°C in the dark. Twenty fungal isolates were obtained and their colonies showed slightly raised center with dense and cotton-like mycelium. Colonies from Hefei (HF1~HF9) appeared pale yellow (Fig.1c), and those from Lujiang (LJ1~LJ11) showed purplish-red on PDA (Fig.1d). Two types of colonies grown on oatmeal agar were flat with few aerial hyphae (Fig.1e&f). On carnation leaf agar (CLA), isolate of HF1 produced abundant slightly curved macroconidia with 3 to 6 septa, 4.3-5.5×20.7-42.5 µm in size (n=100) (Fig.1g&h), without microconidia and chlamydospores observed. By contrast, macroconidia derived from LJ1 isolate were straight to slightly curved with 3 to 5 septa, 4.0-6.58×21.70-71.10 µm (n=100) in size (Fig.1i); Its chlamydospores were globose to subglobose (5.1 to 9.5 µm) on CLA (Fig.1j). Pathogenicity tests were performed on A. eriantha cv. 'White' flowers. The conidia suspension (105 spore/ml, 30 µL/flower) derived from the HF1 and LJ1 were separately dripped on flowers (n=100). Control flowers were treated with ddH2O. Two-week post-inoculation, all inoculated flowers were turned brown and withered (Fig.1k&m), whereas no symptoms were observed on the controls (Fig.1l&n). This experiment was repeated three times. All isolated and re-isolated pathogens from diseased flowers were subjected to molecular identification. Different molecular markers, including internal transcribed spacers (ITS), translation elongation factor (TEF-1α), calmodulin (CaM), RNA polymerase II subunit 1 (RPB1) gene and RNA polymerase II largest subunit (RPB2) gene, were amplified and sequenced to validate species identification (White et al. 1990; O'Donnell, et al. 1998; O'Donnell, et al. 2012). Based on sequence analysis, the re-isolated strains were identical to the inoculated individuals. Sequences of HF1 and HF2 or LJ1 and LJ2 were deposited in GenBank under accession numbers OK310710 to OK310713 (ITS), OK334291 to OK334294 (TEF-1α), OK412973 to OK412976 (CaM), OK412977 to OK412980 (RPB1), and OK484317 to OK484320 (RPB2), respectively. The BLAST search showed that the sequences of HF1 and HF2 showed 99 to 100% identity with ITS (NR_164594), TEF-1α (MK289601), CaM (MK289698), RPB1 (HM347158), and RPB2 (MK289754) of Fusarium luffae isolates. The sequences of LJ1 and LJ2 also revealed 99 to 100% identity with ITS (NR_121320), TEF-1α (AF212452), RPB1 (JX171459), and RPB2 (MW233412) of F. asiaticum isolates. F. asiaticum species-specific primers were used to detect LJ isolates (Yin et al. 2009), and the correct fragments were amplified (Fig.1o). Phylogenetic trees were constructed based on the tandem nucleotide sequences. Thus, both morphological and molecular criteria supported identification of HF group as F. Luffae (Fig.2a) and LJ group as F. asiaticum (Fig.2b). Fusarium spp. causing flower rot on many hosts have been previously reported (W. Elmer, et al. 2019; Liu, et al. 2021), but this is the first report of F. luffae and F. asiaticum on 'White' kiwifruit in China.

First Report of Leaf Spot Caused by Colletotrichum fructicola on Kiwifruit in China.

Kiwifruit (Actinidia spp.) is an important fruit with high nutritional and economic value, which is widely cultivated in China. In April 2021, leaf spots were observed on the leaves of 'Xuxiang' (A. deliciosa) in a kiwifruit plantation of Hefei city, Anhui province, China (117°26'E, 31°85'N). Disease incidence was about 10% of the observed plants. Small yellow spots initially developed on the leaves and gradually expanded into irregular dark brown spots, and eventually the diseased leaves curled and withered. Leaf tissues (n=10, 5×5 mm) were collected from five infected plants, sterilized in 75% ethanol solution for 30 s and 1% NaOCl for 5 min, washed, dried and plated on PDA at 25°C. In total, ten isolates were obtained, including two previously reported Botryosphaeria dothidea (Zhou et al. 2015) and Diaporthe actinidiae strains (Bai et al. 2017) and eight unknown isolates with similar morphology. All unknown isolates initially appeared white with many aerial hyphae, and at the later stage, the center of all colonies turned gray. Colonies were transferred to new PDA with 0.1% yeast extract for three days. Then, aerial hyphae were scraped with sterile cotton swabs, and continued to grow for four days. Orange conidial masses were produced. Conidia were hyaline, smooth-walled, single-celled, cylindrical with broadly rounded ends, with average size around 4.1-5.5×13.2-18.2 µm (n=100). Appressoria (n=50) were ovoid in shape with average size around 4.9-6.7×8.6-11.8 µm. Morphological features were similar to Colletotrichum. gloeosporioides species complex (Weir et al. 2012). To confirm their species identification, internal transcribed spacers (ITS), ß-tubulin (TUB2), glyceraldehydec-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), actin (ACT) and chitin synthase (CHS) were amplified by PCR using the primer pairs ITS1/ITS4, Bt2a/Bt2b, GDF/GDR, ACT-512F/ACT-783R CHS-79F/CHS-234R, respectively (Weir et al. 2012). Based on alignment analysis, sequences of the eight unknown isolates were 100% homologous. The representative isolate LSD3-1 was selected for further study. BLAST analysis showed that the ITS (OM033371), TUB2 (OM044376), GAPDH (OM044377), ACT (OM044379) and CHS (OM044378) sequences of isolate LSD3-1 were 98.7%-100% identical with the collected sequences of C. fructicola strain ICMP:18581 (NR_144783, JX010405, JX010033, JX009866, JX009501). Phylogenetic analysis of multiple genes was conducted with the Maximum likelihood method using MEGA 7. Based on morphological and molecular characteristics, the LSD3-1 was identified as Colletotrichum fructicola (Prihastuti et al., 2009). Koch's postulates were performed on six one-year-old 'Xuxiang' plants, which were used to test pathogenicity in the greenhouse (at 28℃, relative humidity 80%, 16/8 h light/dark). Surface-sterilized leaves were sprayed with a conidial suspension (107 conidia/mL). Yellow and brown lesions were formed 14 to 21 days after inoculation, whereas the mock-inoculated controls remained asymptomatic. The experiment was performed three times. The fungus was reisolated and confirmed as C. fructicola by morphology and sequencing of all previously used genes. Although C. fructicola has been reported as a leaf spot disease on many plants (Shi et al. 2018), this is the first report of leaf spot caused by C. fructicola on kiwifruit in China. This result is helpful to better understanding the pathogen of kiwifruit leaf spot diseases in China and formulate effective control strategies.

Electroacupuncture Modulates Resting-State Functional Connectivity in the Default Mode Network for Healthy Older Adults.

Aging involves cognitive decline and prominent alterations in brain activity. Electroacupuncture (EA), a traditional Chinese medicine approach, is demonstrated to be effective in improving cognitive function of older adults. However, the specific neural mechanism underlying this modulation effect remains unclear. In this study, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate whether EA could improve cognitive performance of community-dwelling older adults and whether these potential improvements are associated with the EA-induced brain functional connectivity alterations. Thirty healthy older adults were recruited and randomly assigned to the EA group and the control group. Behaviorally, we observed an EA-induced improvement in cognitive performance of older adults in the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. On a neural perspective, the EA intervention significantly increased the functional connectivity within the default mode network. Moreover, we found a positive association between the improvement in delayed memory performance and the alterations in the ventral medial prefrontal cortex-hippocampal formation connectivity in the EA group. This study extends previous findings by showing that healthy older adults exhibit neural plasticity manifested as increased functional connectivity after EA sessions, which could induce therapeutic effects in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

MiR-424 Functions as Potential Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarker in Melanoma.

BACKGROUND: Melanoma is one of the most aggressive and lethal skin cancers worldwide. To our knowledge, no specific or sensitive biomarkers have been clinically used to diagnose or predict melanoma prognosis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to regulate oncogenesis and tumor development in various cancers including melanoma. The aim of present study was to determine the clinical value of miR-424 in melanoma. METHODS: First, we examined the expression levels of miR-424 in tissue and serum samples of melanoma patients using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis. Then, receiver operating characteristic curves were used to determine the diagnostic value of miR-424. Furthermore, the chi-square test was used to analyze the relationship between the expression of miR-424 and the clinical characteristics of the patients. Finally, the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was applied to validate the prognostic value of miR-424 in melanoma. RESULTS: The results demonstrated that miR-424 expression was remarkably increased in tissues and serum of pa-tients with melanoma. Moreover, results of ROC analysis showed both tissue and serum expression of miR-424 can serve as diagnostic biomarker for melanoma. Meanwhile, miR-424 expression was significantly associated with tumor thickness (p = 0.031), metastasis (p = 0.010) and tumor stage (p = 0.005) and ulceration (p < 0.001). Finally, patients with higher miR-424 expression have shown decreased overall survival and disease-free survival than those with low miR-424 expression, implying that high miR-424 expression will contribute to poor prognosis of melanoma. CONCLUSIONS: MiR-424 may function as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for melanoma.

Enantioselectivity effects of imazethapyr enantiomers to metabolic responses in mice.

Imazethapyr (IMZT) is a typical chiral pesticide with two enantiomers with the R-IMZT having the main herbicidal activity. However, the enantioselectivity of the effects of IMZT enantiomers on human and animals is still unclear. In this study, a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomics method and determination of oxidative stress were used to evaluate the enantioselectivity of IMZT enantiomers in mice. The results showed that the R-IMZT caused larger disturbances of endogenous metabolites and the S-IMZT had stronger interferences to oxidation defense system. The significantly perturbed metabolic pathways in mice exposed to the R-enantiomer were the valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis pathway as well as the phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis pathway. However, exposure of mice to the S-enantiomer did not significantly affect the metabolic pathways, but exposure led to an increase of catalase (CAT) activity and an increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the liver. These results indicate that we need to conduct a more comprehensive assessment of the health risks of pesticide monomers in the future. In a word, these results provide more evidence for assessing the differences in health risks of IMZT enantiomers to mammals as well as provide more references for the promotion and use of pesticide monomers in the future.

Weak Knock Characteristic Extraction of a Two-Stroke Spark Ignition UAV Engine Burning RP-3 Kerosene Fuel Based on Intrinsic Modal Functions Energy Method.

To solve the problem of the weak knock characteristic extraction for a port-injected two-stoke spark ignition (SI) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) engine burning aviation kerosene fuel, which is also known as the Rocket Propellant 3 (RP-3), the Intrinsic modal Functions Energy (IMFE) method is proposed according to the orthogonality of the intrinsic modal functions (IMFs). In this method, engine block vibration signals of the two-stroke SI UAV engine are decomposed into a finite number of intrinsic modal function (IMF) components. Then, the energy weight value of each IMF component is calculated, and the IMF component with the largest energy weight value is selected as the dominant characteristic component. The knock characteristic frequency of the two-stroke SI UAV engine is obtained by analyzing the frequency spectrum of the dominant characteristic component. A simulation experiment is designed and the feasibility of the algorithm is verified. The engine block vibration signals of the two-stroke SI UAV engine at 5100 rpm and 5200 rpm were extracted by this method. The results showed that the knock characteristic frequencies of engine block vibration signals at 5100 rpm and 5200 rpm were 3.320 kHz and 3.125 kHz, respectively. The Wavelet Packet Energy method was used to extract the characteristics of the same engine block vibration signal at 5200 rpm, and the same result as the IMFE method is obtained, which verifies the effectiveness of the IMFE method.

[Mechanisms of Huanshao Capsules protecting the reproductive function in rats with ornidazole-induced asthenozoospermia].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the possible mechanism of Huanshao Capsules (HSC) protecting the reproductive function in rats with ornidazole-induced asthenozoospermia (AZS). METHODS: Forty SD male rats were randomly divided into four groups of equal number, blank control, AZS model control, HSC and L-carnitine (LC) intervention. The AZS model was established in the latter three groups of rats by intragastrical administration of ornidazole at 400 mg/kg/d for 28 days, and meanwhile the animals in the HSC and LC groups were treated by gavage of HSC at 0.31 g/kg/d and LC at 100 mg/kg/d, respectively. Then, all the rats were killed for examination of the LC content, sperm concentration, sperm motility and expression of OCTN2 mRNA in the epididymis and observation of the histopathological changes in the testis tissue. RESULTS: Compared with the AZS model controls, the rats in the HSC and LC groups showed significantly increased LC content (2 880.3 vs 6 366.5 and 6 934.7 mg/L, P < 0.01), sperm concentration (ï¼»34.58 ± 10.25ï¼½ vs ï¼»46.19 ± 14.23ï¼½ and ï¼»42.25 ± 6.11ï¼½ ×106/ml, P < 0.01), sperm motility (ï¼»42.59 ± 7.54ï¼½% vs ï¼»61.34 ± 7.98ï¼½% and ï¼»61.34 ± 7.98ï¼½%, P < 0.01) and expression of OCTN2 mRNA in the epididymis (26.07% vs 27.26% and 27.15%, P < 0.01). The animals of the HSC group exhibited a higher comparability than those of the LC group to the blank controls in the morphology, arrangement and activity of spermatogenic cells. CONCLUSIONS: HSC can protect the reproductive function and improve sperm concentration and motility in the model rats with ornidazole-induced AZS, which may be associated with its abilities of up-regulating the expression of OCTN2 mRNA and increasing the LC content in the epididymis.

The histone H3 lysine-27 demethylase UTX plays a critical role in colorectal cancer cell proliferation.

BACKGROUND: Ubiquitously transcribed tetratricopeptide repeat, X chromosome (UTX) is an H3K27me3 demethylase, a permissive mark associated with active gene transcription. UTX has been linked to various human cancers. Colorectal cancer (CRC) ranks 3rd among the most common cancers worldwide. However, the role of UTX in colorectal cancer has rarely been reported. METHODS: RT-qPCR, immunoblotting assays (WB), and immunohistochemistry staining were conducted to explore the UTX expression levels in CRC tissues and surrounding normal tissues. CCK-8 assays, colony formation assays, and flow cytometry were also used to determine the potential role of UTX in CRC cell proliferation in vitro. A cell line-derived xenograft model was performed to determine on the role of UTX in HCT116 cell proliferation in vivo. The protein expression levels of UTX, KIF14, AKT, and GAPDH were examined by WB. RESULTS: Compared with surrounding normal tissues, UTX was upregulated in CRC tissues. Knockdown of UTX significantly inhibited proliferation and caused G0/G1 cell cycle arrest in CRC cell lines, and overexpression of UTX significantly promoted proliferation in CRC cells. Furthermore, knockdown of UTX significantly inhibited tumour growth in vivo. In addition, knockdown of UTX decreased the expression of KIF14 and pAKT and increased the expression of P21. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that knockdown of UTX inhibits CRC cell proliferation and causes G0/G1 cell cycle arrest through downregulating expression of KIF 14 and pAKT. Thus, UTX may serve as a novel biomarker in CRC.