A smartphone-assisted portable sensing hydrogel modules based on UCNPs and Co3O4 NPs for fluorescence quantitation of hypoxanthine in aquatic products.

Hypoxanthine is a promising index for evaluating the freshness of various aquatic products. Combined the hydrogels containing upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), Co3O4 NPs, and N-ethyl-N-(3-sulfopropyl)-3-methylaniline sodium salt/4-amino-antipyrine (TOPS/4-AAP) with a smartphone, a portable sensor was developed for the convenient, sensitive detection of hypoxanthine. With the H2O2 from xanthine oxidase (XOD)-catalyzed reactions of hypoxanthine, the fluorescence of UCNPs was effectively quenched by the purple product produced from the oxidization of TOPS/4-AAP catalyzed by Co3O4 NPs exhibiting peroxidase activity, among which the color change could be transformed into digital signals for quantification of hypoxanthine. The Green value in the RGB analysis of the fluorescence image was negatively proportional to hypoxanthine concentration in the range of 2.5-20 mg/L with a detection limit of 0.69 mg/L and a quantitation limit of 2.30 mg/L. Finally, this sensor was applied for hypoxanthine detection in real aquatic products, showing potential application for freshness evaluation of aquatic products.

A smartphone-assisted sensing hydrogels based on UCNPs@SiO2-phenol red nanoprobes for detecting the pH of aquatic products.

For some aquatic products, pH has been considered a useful index to reflect the changes in materials during the loss of freshness. Based on the inner filter effect (IFE) between deprotonated phenol red (PR) and upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), UCNPs coated with PR-doped SiO2 shell were embedded in agarose hydrogel to develop a smartphone-assisted method for pH sensing. With the enhancement of pH response using a phase transfer agent (i.e., tetra butyl ammonium hydroxide, TBAH), the proposed senor realized the colorimetric and fluorescence detection of pH in the range of pH 6.6-8 and pH 6-8, respectively. The sensor also showed satisfied reversibility when switched between pH 6 and 8 for at least 5 cycles. Moreover, this sensor displayed great sensitivity, stability, and portability in analyzing actual fish, shrimp, and shellfish samples, providing a new sight for evaluating the freshness of aquatic products.

Impacts of inflammatory cytokines on depression: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory factors are associated with depression. We seek to investigate the correlation between inflammatory cytokines and prognosis of depression or suicidal ideation and behavior at 3 months in depression patients. METHODS: Eighty-two depressed outpatients were recruited and treated as usual. Plasma cytokines were measured at baseline. Patients were followed up with Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and suicidal ideation and behavior according to the item 3 of Hamilton depression scale for 3 months. RESULTS: Compared to the depression patients with low level of interleukin-1ß, the high one had severe depressive symptoms at month 2 and 3 (B 0.92, P < 0.01; B 0.86, P = 0.02; respectively). The incidence of suicidal ideation or behavior was 18.3% at 3 months. Depression patients with high levels of tumor necrosis factor-α showed high risk of suicidal ideation and behavior than the low one (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.00-4.65, P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: High levels of interleukin-1ß and tumor necrosis factor-α were predictive of middle-term severe depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation and behavior respectively.

Characterization of oxylipins in Antarctic krill oil (Euphausia superba) during storage based on RPLC-MS/MS analysis.

Antarctic krill oil (AKO) is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), but is prone to oxidative degradation, resulting in the formation of oxylipins, which compromise AKO quality. Herein, we used reversed-phase-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (RPLC-MS/MS) to perform qualitative and semi-quantitative analyses of oxylipins in AKO during storage. A total of 27 oxylipins were identified. A notable decrease in epoxy oxylipins (from 41.8 % to 26.9 % of the total oxylipins) was observed, whereas the content of dihydro oxylipins initially increased and then decreased with 48 h, as a pivotal point for AKO quality decline during storage. We suspected that the ratio of dihydroxyl and epoxy oxylipins could be a novel oxidative index to evaluate the oxidation of AKO. Statistical analysis allowed the identification of five oxylipins which showed unique correlations with various indexes. The findings discussed herein provide important new insights into mechanisms of oxidation occurring in AKO during storage.

Exploring the role of ubiquitin regulatory X domain family proteins in cancers: bioinformatics insights, mechanisms, and implications for therapy.

UBXD family (UBXDF), a group of proteins containing ubiquitin regulatory X (UBX) domains, play a crucial role in the imbalance of proliferation and apoptotic in cancer. In this study, we summarised bioinformatics proof on multi-omics databases and literature on UBXDF's effects on cancer. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that Fas-associated factor 1 (FAF1) has the largest number of gene alterations in the UBXD family and has been linked to survival and cancer progression in many cancers. UBXDF may affect tumour microenvironment (TME) and drugtherapy and should be investigated in the future. We also summarised the experimental evidence of the mechanism of UBXDF in cancer, both in vitro and in vivo, as well as its application in clinical and targeted drugs. We compared bioinformatics and literature to provide a multi-omics insight into UBXDF in cancers, review proof and mechanism of UBXDF effects on cancers, and prospect future research directions in-depth. We hope that this paper will be helpful for direct cancer-related UBXDF studies.

Biomarker of Pulmonary Inflammatory Response in LUAD: miR-584-5p Targets RAB23 to Suppress Inflammation Induced by LPS in A549 Cells.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary inflammatory response (PIR) is one of the prognostic risk factors of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), with a high mortality rate. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to investigate prognostic microRNA (miRNA) to improve clinical prognosis prediction and postoperative inflammation treatment in LUAD patients. METHODS: About 201 differentially expressed microRNAs (DE-miRNAs) in LUAD were mined by differential analysis. Univariate/multivariate Cox analyses established and validated prognostic risk miRNAs in TCGA-LUAD. KEGG and GO were used to link risk signatures and biological functions. After 48 hours of exposure to 50 ng/mL LPS, the miR-584-5p/RAB23 regulatory network was verified in qRT-PCR, Western Blotting, and the Luciferase Reporter Assay in A549 cells. RESULTS: MiR-584-5p and miR-101-3p were validated as riskscore correlated with LUAD patients' 1-year survival (p < 0.001) and participate in multiple inflammation-related pathways. RAB23, a RAS oncogene, is involved in inflammatory MAPK signaling. Evidence suggests that miR-584-5p regulates inflammation in LUAD by targeting RAB23. A549 cells were transfected with the mimic and inhibitor of miR-584-5p, confirming the negative regulatory relationship between miR-584-5p and RAB23. In the A549 induced by LPS, either over-expression of miR-584-5p or knock-down of RAB23 expression decreased the expression of inflammatory factors and increased cell viability. CONCLUSION: Prognostic-related risk miR-584-5p can regulate the expression of RAB23 at both the mRNA and protein levels, thereby influencing the development of a PIR in LUAD. This will have significant implications for the clinical prognosis prediction and therapy decision-making of LUAD patients with PIR.

Diagnostic implications of lncRNA NORAD in breast cancer.

This study aimed to assess the expression levels of non-coding RNA activated by DNA damage (NORAD) in the cells, tissues, and serum of breast cancer (BRCA) patients and benign breast nodules and investigate its association with clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis in BRCA. NORAD was analyzed using TCGA-BRCA, GSE77308, Cellminer, and Sangerbox databases, revealing its significance in BRCA prognosis, immune microenvironment, and cell function. Serum samples from 38 BRCA patients, 80 patients with benign breast nodules (50 fibroadenoma and 30 breast adenosis cases), and 42 healthy individuals were collected from Zhejiang Xiaoshan Hospital. NORAD expression was quantified using quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR). Differential NORAD expression between benign and malignant breast nodules and its relationship to clinicopathological characteristics were assessed. NORAD demonstrated elevated expression in BRCA patient serum compared to healthy individuals and those with benign breast nodules (P < 0.05). Moreover, its expression correlated with TNM-stage, lymph node metastasis, and luminal classification. These findings highlight the elevated NORAD expression in BRCA patient serum and its correlation with clinicopathological characteristics, providing insights into its potential as a diagnostic biomarker or therapeutic target.

The Emerging Roles of circRNAs in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma: Molecular Mechanisms and Biomarker Potential.

Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is a common endocrine malignant tumor. The incidence of PTC has increased in the past decades and presents a younger trend. Accumulating evidence indicates that circular RNAs (circRNAs), featured with non-linear, closed-loop structures, play pivotal roles in tumorigenesis and regulate cell biological processes, such as proliferation, migration, and invasion, by acting as microRNA (miRNA) sponges. Additionally, due to their unique stability, circRNAs hold promising potential as diagnostic biomarkers and effective therapeutic targets for PTC treatment. In this review, we systematically arrange the expression level of circRNAs, related clinical characteristics, circRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory network, and molecular mechanisms. Furthermore, related signaling pathways and their potential ability of diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets are discussed, which might provide a new strategy for PTC diagnosis, monitoring, and prognosis.

Halogen-regulating induced reversible high-temperature dielectric and thermal transitions in novel layered organic-inorganic hybrid semiconducting crystals.

Organic-inorganic hybrid metal halides for high-temperature phase transition have become increasingly popular owing to their wide operating temperature range in practical applications, e.g., energy storage, permittivity switches and opto-electronic devices. This paper describes the subtle assembly of two new hybrid perovskite crystals, [Cl-C6H4-(CH2)2NH3]2CdX4 (X = Br 1; Cl 2), undergoing high-T reversible phase transformations around 335 K/356 K. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), differential thermal analysis (DTA) and VT PXRD tests uncover their reversible first-order phase transition behaviors. Furthermore, the compounds exhibit switchable dielectricity near T, making them potential dielectric switching materials. Hirshfeld surface analysis well discloses a distinct difference in hydrogen-bonding interaction between 1 and 2. UV spectra and computational analysis demonstrate that the compounds are a type of direct-band-gap semiconductor. This research will contribute an effective approach to the structure and development of multifunctional molecular hybrid crystals.

Effect of lipid oxidation on quality attributes and control technologies in dried aquatic animal products: a critical review.

Aquatic animals are viewed as a good source of healthy lipids. Although drying is an effective method for the preservation of aquatic animal products (AAPs), the whole process is accompanied by lipid oxidation. This article reviews the main mechanism of lipid oxidation in the drying process. It also summarizes the effects of lipid oxidation on the quality of dried aquatic animal products (DAAPs), including nutrients, color, flavor, and hazard components, especially for those harmful aldehydes and heterocyclic amines. In addition, it concluded that moderate lipid oxidation contributes to improving the quality of products. Still, excessive lipid oxidation produces hazardous substances and induces health risks. Hence, to obtain high-quality DAAPs, some effective control technologies to promote/prevent lipid oxidation are introduced and deeply discussed, including salting, high-pressure processing, irradiation, non-thermal plasma technology, defatting treatments, antioxidants, and edible coating. A systematic review of the effect of lipid oxidation on quality attributes and control technologies in DAAPs is presented, and some perspectives are made for future research.

Surfactants Accelerate Isotope Exchange-Based 18F-Fluorination in Water.

Radiochemical yields (RCYs) of isotope exchange-based 18F-fluorination of non-carbon-centered substrates in water are rationally enhanced by adding surfactants, which increases both the rate constant k and local reactant concentrations. Among 12 surfactants, the cationic surfactant cetrimonium bromide (CTAB) and two nonionic surfactants (Tween 20 and Tween 80) were selected for their superior catalytic effects, namely, electrostatic effects or solubilization effects. For a model substrate, bis(4-methoxyphenyl)phosphinic fluoride, the 18F-fluorination rate constant (k) increased up to 7-fold, while its saturation concentration rose up to 15-fold due to micelle formation, encapsulating 70-94% of the substrate. With 30.0 mmol/L CTAB, the required 18F-labeling temperature of a typical organofluorosilicon prosthesis ([18F]SiFA) decreased from 95 °C to room temperature, achieving an RCY of 22%. For an E[c(RGDyK)]2-derived peptide tracer with an organofluorophosphine prosthesis, the RCY in water at 90 °C achieved 25%, correspondingly increasing the molar activity (Am). After high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) or solid-phase purification, the residual selected surfactant concentrations in the tracer injections were well below the FDA DII (Inactive Ingredient Database) limits or the LD50 in mice.

Machine learning modeling and prognostic value analysis of invasion-related genes in cutaneous melanoma.

In this study, we aimed to develop an invasion-related risk signature and prognostic model for personalized treatment and prognosis prediction in skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM), as invasion plays a crucial role in this disease. We identified 124 differentially expressed invasion-associated genes (DE-IAGs) and selected 20 prognostic genes (TTYH3, NME1, ORC1, PLK1, MYO10, SPINT1, NUPR1, SERPINE2, HLA-DQB2, METTL7B, TIMP1, NOX4, DBI, ARL15, APOBEC3G, ARRB2, DRAM1, RNF213, C14orf28, and CPEB3) using Cox and LASSO regression to establish a risk score. Gene expression was validated through single-cell sequencing, protein expression, and transcriptome analysis. Negative correlations were discovered between risk score, immune score, and stromal score using ESTIMATE and CIBERSORT algorithms. High- and low-risk groups exhibited significant differences in immune cell infiltration and checkpoint molecule expression. The 20 prognostic genes effectively differentiated between SKCM and normal samples (AUCs >0.7). We identified 234 drugs targeting 6 genes from the DGIdb database. Our study provides potential biomarkers and a risk signature for personalized treatment and prognosis prediction in SKCM patients. We developed a nomogram and machine-learning prognostic model to predict 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) using risk signature and clinical factors. The best model, Extra Trees Classifier (AUC = 0.88), was derived from pycaret's comparison of 15 classifiers. The pipeline and app are accessible at https://github.com/EnyuY/IAGs-in-SKCM.

Effects of high-sugar, high-cholesterol, and high-fat diet on phospholipid profile of mouse tissues with a focus on the mechanism of plasmalogen synthesis.

High-sugar diet (HSD), high-cholesterol diet (HCD), and high-fat diet (HFD) all modulate the levels of lipids. However, there is a lack of comparative data on the effects of different diets on phospholipids (PLs). Given their important role in physiology and disease, there has been an increasing focus on altered PLs in liver and brain disorders. This study aims to determine the effects of HSD, HCD, and HFD for 14-week feeding on the PL profile of the mouse liver and hippocampus. Quantitative analysis of 116 and 113 PL molecular species in liver and hippocampus tissues revealed that the HSD, HCD, and HFD significantly affected the PLs in liver and hippocampus, especially decreased the levels of plasmenylethanolamine (pPE) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE). Overall, the impact of HFD on liver PLs was more significant, consistent with the morphological changes in the liver. Compared to HSD and HCD, HFD induced a significant decrease in PC (P-16:0/18:1) and an increase in LPE (18:0) and LPE (18:1) in liver. In the liver of mice fed with different diets, the expression of the key enzymes Gnpat, Agps in the pPE biosynthesis pathway and peroxisome-associated membrane proteins pex14p were decreased. In addition, all diets significantly reduced the expression of Gnpat, pex7p, and pex16p in hippocampus tissue. In conclusion, HSD, HCD, and HFD enhanced lipid accumulation in the liver, led to liver injury, significantly affected the liver and hippocampus PLs, and decreased the expression of genes related to plasmalogen synthesis in mouse liver and hippocampus, which caused severe plasmalogen reduction.

High-Temperature Ferroelasticity and Photoluminescence in a 2D Monolayer Perovskite Compound: (C5NH8Br)2PbBr4.

Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites (HOIPs) have attracted much attention due to their excellent properties and easy synthesis. As far as we know, most documented ferroelastics mainly focus on the 3D (three-dimensional) perovskites, the 2D monolayer perovskite ferroelastics are rarely reported before. In this work, we synthesized a 2D lead-based perovskite (C5NH13Br)2PbBr4 (1) (C5NH13Br = 5-bromoamylamine cation) by introducing flexible chain organic cations. The evolution of ferroelastic domains observed by a polarized light microscope confirms that compound 1 undergoes a ferroelastic phase transition at 392/384 K. In addition, its direct band gap is 2.877 eV. Interestingly, the material emits an attractive blue light (quantum yield 5.06%) under UV light. Three structural descriptors are introduced to quantitatively analyze the relationship between structural distortion and the shape of emission peak. This work provides a way to design multifunctional perovskite-type materials.

Comprehensive Lipid Profile of Eight Echinoderm Species by RPLC-Triple TOF-MS/MS.

Echinoderms are of broad interest for abundant bioactive lipids. The comprehensive lipid profiles in eight echinoderm species were obtained by UPLC-Triple TOF-MS/MS with characterization and semi-quantitative analysis of 961 lipid molecular species in 14 subclasses of 4 classes. Phospholipids (38.78-76.83%) and glycerolipids (6.85-42.82%) were the main classes in all investigated echinoderm species, with abundant ether phospholipids, whereas the proportion of sphingolipids was higher in sea cucumbers. Two sulfated lipid subclasses were detected in echinoderms for the first time; sterol sulfate was rich in sea cucumbers, whereas sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol existed in the sea star and sea urchins. Furthermore, PC(18:1/24:2), PE(16:0/14:0), and TAG(50:1e) could be used as lipid markers to distinguish eight echinoderm species. In this study, the differentiation of eight echinoderms was achieved by lipidomics and revealed the uniqueness of the natural biochemical fingerprints of echinoderms. The findings will help evaluate the nutritional value in the future.

68Ga-Labeled TMTP1 Derivatives with Moderate Hydrophilicity for Positron Emission Tomography of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in High Contrast.

The reported specific positron emission tomography (PET) probes for the diagnosis of highly metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) suffer from excessively high background uptake and fast blood clearance. Herein, five 68Ga-labeled polyethylene glycol (PEG)-modified derivatives of the TMTP1 peptide were synthesized. The log D values decreased from -1.70 (non-PEGylated) to -1.97 to -2.94 corresponding to the increase of PEG chain length. Subnanomolar and nanomolar affinities comparable to the non-PEGylated TMTP1 derivative were revealed by the IC50 values in SMMC-7721 cells. [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-PEG2-TMTP1 presented a significantly higher tumor/liver ratio (4.19 ± 0.54, at 30 min post intravenous injection) and tumor/muscle ratio (2.14 ± 0.17) compared to the others and the previously radiolabeled TMTP1 derivatives. Small HCC lesions (<2 mm) in situ were detected with high tumor/liver ratio and low tumor/muscle ratio. The improved pharmacokinetics and blood clearance rate of 68Ga-labeled TMTP1 derivatives indicated that moderate hydrophilicity due to PEGylation contributed to high-contrast PET of HCC.

A Molecular Toolbox of Positron Emission Tomography Tracers for General Anesthesia Mechanism Research.

With appropriate radiotracers, positron emission tomography (PET) allows direct or indirect monitoring of the spatial and temporal distribution of anesthetics, neurotransmitters, and biomarkers, making it an indispensable tool for studying the general anesthesia mechanism. In this Perspective, PET tracers that have been recruited in general anesthesia research are introduced in the following order: 1) 11C/18F-labeled anesthetics, i.e., PET tracers made from inhaled and intravenous anesthetics; 2) PET tracers targeting anesthesia-related receptors, e.g., neurotransmitters and voltage-gated ion channels; and 3) PET tracers for studying anesthesia-related neurophysiological effects and neurotoxicity. The radiosynthesis, pharmacodynamics, and pharmacokinetics of the above PET tracers are mainly discussed to provide a practical molecular toolbox for radiochemists, anesthesiologists, and those who are interested in general anesthesia.

The CCT transcriptional activator Ghd2 constantly delays the heading date by upregulating CO3 in rice.

CONSTANS, CO-like, and TOC1 (CCT) family genes play important roles in regulating heading date, which exerts a large impact on the regional and seasonal adaptation of rice. Previous studies have shown that Grain number, plant height, and heading date2 (Ghd2) exhibit a negative response to drought stress by directly upregulating Rubisco activase and exerting a negative effect on heading date. However, the target gene of Ghd2 regulating heading date is still unknown. In this study, CO3 is identified by analyzing ChIP-seq data. Ghd2 activates CO3 expression by binding to the CO3 promoter through its CCT domain. EMSA experiments show that the motif CCACTA in the CO3 promoter was recognized by Ghd2. A comparison of the heading dates among plants with CO3 knocked out or overexpressed and double mutants overexpressing Ghd2 with CO3 knocked out shows that CO3 negatively and constantly regulates flowering by repressing the transcription of Ehd1, Hd3a, and RFT1. In addition, the target genes of CO3 are explored via a comprehensive analysis of DAP-seq data and RNA-seq data. Taken together, these results suggest that Ghd2 directly binds to the downstream gene CO3, and the Ghd2-CO3 module constantly delays heading date via the Ehd1-mediated pathway.

First Report of Pectobacterium brasiliense Causing Bacterial Blackleg and Soft Rot of Potato in Pennsylvania.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum) plants showing blackleg and soft rot symptoms were collected at a commercial vegetable farm near Newmanstown, PA in August 2021 (Fig. S1). The incidence of potato blackleg in the unirrigated field was about 5 to 8%, but approximately 30% in the irrigated field. The diseased stems were cut into 5 cm and surface disinfected. The stem segments were placed into a 50-mL tube containing 15 mL of sterile water for 15 min for bacterial release. The bacterial suspension was streaked on crystal violet polypectate (CVP) (Hélias et al. 2012) plates and incubated at 28°C for 48 h. Three single colonies produced pits on CVP were picked and purified. Genomic DNA of all three isolates were extracted using the FastDNA Spin Kit (MP Biomedicals, Santa Ana, CA). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed using all three extracted DNAs as a template with the primer pairs gapA 7F/938R (Cigna et al. 2017), recA F/R (Waleron et al. 2001), dnaA F/R (Schneider et al. 2011) and dnaX F/R (Slawiak et al. 2009) targeting the gapA, recA, dnaA and dnaX genes, respectively. Isolate 21PA01 was further studied as a representative isolate. PCR amplicons derived from both forward and reverse primers were sequenced and analyzed using the BLAST algorithm against the NCBI database (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov). The regions of gapA (GenBank accession No. ON989738), recA (ON989739), dnaA (OP121183), and dnaX (OP121184) had 99.86%, 100%, 98.88%, and 100% identities with Pectobacterium brasiliense strains S1.16.01.3M (MN167062.1), BL-2 (MW721598.1), IPO:4132 (CP059956.1), and BL-2 (MW721603.1), respectively. A phylogenetic maximum-likelihood tree of the concatenated genes with the length of 2551 bp was constructed to visualize the relationship among different species of Dickeya and Pectobacterium. As a result, 21PA01 was in a single monophyletic cluster with other Pectobacterium brasiliense reference strains (Fig. S2 C). To confirm the pathogen, Koch's postulates were performed. Seed pieces of potato 'Lamoka' were planted in potting mix in one-gallon plastic pots in a greenhouse. Three weeks after emergence, the stems of three plants were each injected with 10 µL of bacteria suspension of either 21PA01 at 107 CFU/mL, P. parmentieri ME175 in tryptic soy broth (TSB) at 107 CFU/mL or TSB at 2 cm above the soil line. Seven days after inoculation, stems inoculated with 21PA01 and ME175 showed black and rotten symptoms, whereas the TSB-injected control plants remained symptomless. In addition, 'Lamoka' tubers were inoculated by placing 10 µL 21PA01 and ME175 suspensions at 107 CFU/mL, and TSB in a 1-cm-deep hole poked in a tuber separately and then sealed with petroleum gel, followed by incubation in a moist chamber at 22 °C for 4 d. The 21PA01 and ME175 inoculated tubers showed soft rot symptoms, but the TSB treatment had no symptoms. Bacterial colonies were isolated from the infected stems and confirmed by the DNA sequences as described above. PCR result was negative on control plant samples. Both stem and tuber inoculation trials were repeated two times, and the results were consistent. Thus, 21PA01 was identified as Pectobacterium brasiliense. To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. brasiliense infecting potatoes in Pennsylvania, USA, although it has been reported somewhere else (van der Merwe et al. 2010, Zhao et al. 2018). This could be a new species in Northeastern US.

Mechanosensitive channel Piezo1 is an essential regulator in cell cycle progression of optic nerve head astrocytes.

Optic nerve head (ONH) astrocytes provide structural and metabolic support to neuronal axons in developmental, physiological, and pathological progression. Mechanosensitive properties of astrocytes allow them to sense and respond to mechanical cues from the local environment. We confirmed that ONH astrocytes express the mechanosensitive ion channel Piezo1 in vivo. By manipulating Piezo1 knockdown or overexpression in vitro, we found that Piezo1 is necessary but insufficient for ONH astrocyte proliferation. Loss of Piezo1 can lead to cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase, a possible mechanism involving decreased yes-associated protein (YAP) nuclear localization and downregulation of YAP-target cell cycle-associated factors, including cyclin D1 and c-Myc. Gene ontology enrichment analysis of differential expression genes from RNA-seq data indicates that the absence of Piezo1 affects biological processes involving cell division. Our results demonstrate that Piezo1 is an essential regulator in cell cycle progression in ONH astrocytes.