Natural Albino Mutant of Daylily (Hemerocallis spp.) Reveals a Link between Drought Sensitivity and Photosynthetic Pigments Metabolism.

BACKGROUND: Mutant analysis remains one of the main genetic tools for characterising unclarified gene functions in plants, especially in non-model plants. Daylily (Hemerocallis spp.) is a popular perennial ornamental plant grown worldwide. Analysis of daylily mutants can enhance understanding of genes regulating the albino phenotype and improve the cultivar quality of daylily. METHODS: The natural albino mutant (Alb-⁣/-) was isolated by screening a self-pollinated progeny of daylily cultivar 'black-eyed stella'. Transmission electron microscopy was used in analysing the structure of plastids between mutant and wild-type seedlings. The content of chlorophyll, carotenoids and chlorophyll precursors in plants was measured by ultraviolet spectrophotometry. RNA sequencing and physiological measurements were performed to explore the association between drought tolerance and mutation. RESULTS: All the seedlings of the daylily albino mutants died spontaneously within fifteen days after germination when grown in soil. The carotenoid and chlorophyll content in the leaves of the mutant plants significantly decreased compared with those of the wild-type control. The mutant plants displayed stunted growth, and their leaves were white or light yellow in color. Abnormal plastids such as those showing endomembrane vesiculation and lacking stacking were discovered in the leaves of mutant plants. Furthermore, genetic analysis revealed that a single recessive nuclear gene mutation led to the albino trait, RNA sequencing and real-time quantitative PCR validation showed extensive differences in gene expression between the mutant plants and the wild-type control, and most of the genes related to chlorophyll metabolism were down-regulated, with foldchange ranging from 0.20-0.49. Additionally, the surviving homozygous plants (Alb+⁣/+), which do not contain this mutation, were also isolated by analysing the phenotype of their self-pollinated progeny. The net photosynthesis rate and light saturation point of Alb+⁣/+ were higher than those of heterozygous (Alb+⁣/-) plants. Additionally, the Alb+⁣/+ plants were more tolerant to drought conditions than the Alb+⁣/- plants, suggesting that a heterozygous Alb- mutation is sufficient to negatively affect photosynthetic efficiency and drought tolerance. CONCLUSIONS: The albino mutation negatively affects photosynthetic efficiency and drought tolerance, and homozygous mutation is required for the characteristic albino phenotype. This work highlights the link between albino mutation, photosynthetic pigment metabolism and drought sensitivity in daylily.

Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of the SWEET gene family in daylily (Hemerocallis fulva) and functional analysis of HfSWEET17 in response to cold stress.

BACKGROUND: The Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporters (SWEETs) are a newly discovered family of sugar transporters whose members exist in a variety of organisms and are highly conserved. SWEETs have been reported to be involved in the growth and development of many plants, but little is known about SWEETs in daylily (Hemerocallis fulva), an important perennial ornamental flower. RESULTS: In this study, 19 daylily SWEETs were identified and named based on their homologous genes in Arabidopsis and rice. Phylogenetic analysis classified these HfSWEETs into four clades (Clades I to IV). The conserved motifs and gene structures showed that the HfSWEETs were very conservative during evolution. Chromosomal localization and synteny analysis found that HfSWEETs were unevenly distributed on 11 chromosomes, and there were five pairs of segmentally duplicated events and one pair of tandem duplication events. The expression patterns of the 19 HfSWEETs showed that the expression patterns of most HfSWEETs in different tissues were related to corresponding clades, and most HfSWEETs were up-regulated under low temperatures. Furthermore, HfSWEET17 was overexpressed in tobacco, and the cold resistance of transgenic plants was much higher than that of wild-type tobacco. CONCLUSION: This study identified the SWEET gene family in daylily at the genome-wide level. Most of the 19 HfSWEETs were expressed differently in different tissues and under low temperatures. Overexpression further suggests that HfSWEET17 participates in daylily low-temperature response. The results of this study provide a basis for further functional analysis of the SWEET family in daylily.

Fanconi anemia ortholog FANCM regulates meiotic crossover distribution in plants.

Meiotic recombination increases genetic diversity and manipulation of its frequency and distribution holds great promise in crop breeding. In Arabidopsis thaliana, FANCM (a homolog of mammalian Fanconi anemia complementation group M) suppresses recombination and its function seems conserved in other species including the rosids Brassica spp. and pea (Pisum sativum), and the monocot rice (Oryza sativa). To examine the role of FANCM during meiotic recombination in lettuce (Lactuca sativa, an asterid), we characterized the function of lettuce LsFANCM and found that it can functionally substitute for AtFANCM in transgenic Arabidopsis plants. Moreover, three independent CRISPR/Cas9-edited lettuce Lsfancm mutants showed reduced pollen viability and seed setting. Unexpectedly, analyses of chromosome behavior revealed that 77.8% of Lsfancm meiocytes exhibited univalents. The normal formation of double-strand breaks in DNA and the discontinuous assembly of synaptonemal complex in Lsfancm mutants supports the hypothesis that LsFANCM might be dispensable for the initiation of meiotic recombination but required for normal synapsis. Furthermore, the frequency of lettuce HEI10 (Human Enhancer of Invasion 10) foci, a marker for Class-I crossovers (COs), was similar between wild-type (WT) and Lsfancm. Strikingly, the distribution of LsHEI10 foci and chiasmata in Lsfancm meiotic chromosomes was markedly different from the WT. A similar alteration in the distribution of Class-I COs was also observed in the Arabidopsis Atfancm mutant. Taken together, these results demonstrate that FANCM is important for shaping the distribution of meiotic Class-I COs in plants, and reveal an evolutionarily divergent role for FANCM in meiotic bivalent formation between Arabidopsis and lettuce.

The sugar transporter system of strawberry: genome-wide identification and expression correlation with fruit soluble sugar-related traits in a Fragaria × ananassa germplasm collection.

Sugar from plant photosynthesis is a basic requirement for life activities. Sugar transporters are the proteins that mediate sugar allocation among or within source/sink organs. The transporters of the major facilitator superfamily (MFS) targeting carbohydrates represent the largest family of sugar transporters in many plants. Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duchesne) is an important crop appreciated worldwide for its unique fruit flavor. The involvement of MFS sugar transporters (STs) in cultivated strawberry fruit sugar accumulation is largely unknown. In this work, we characterized the genetic variation associated with fruit soluble sugars in a collection including 154 varieties. Then, a total of 67 ST genes were identified in the v4.0 genome integrated with the v4.0.a2 protein database of F. vesca, the dominant subgenome provider for modern cultivated strawberry. Phylogenetic analysis updated the nomenclature of strawberry ST homoeologs. Both the chromosomal distribution and structural characteristics of the ST family were improved. Semi-RT-PCR analysis in nine tissues from cv. Benihoppe screened 34 highly expressed ST genes in fruits. In three varieties with dramatically differing fruit sugar levels, qPCR integrated with correlation analysis between ST transcript abundance and sugar content identified 13 sugar-correlated genes. The correlations were re-evaluated across 19 varieties, including major commercial cultivars grown in China. Finally, a model of the contribution of the sugar transporter system to subcellular sugar allocation in strawberry fruits was proposed. Our work highlights the involvement of STs in controlling strawberry fruit soluble sugars and provides candidates for the future functional study of STs in strawberry development and responses and a new approach for strawberry genetic engineering and molecular breeding.

KIF18B as a regulator in microtubule movement accelerates tumor progression and triggers poor outcome in lung adenocarcinoma.

KIF18B is involved in several tumor progression and exerts critical effects on microtubule growth during mitosis, but its role in lung adenocarcinoma still remains rare. Hence, we attempted to explore the biological function of KIF18B in lung adenocarcinoma. We first analyzed the expressional pattern of KIF18B in lung adenocarcinoma, and detected the correlation between KIF18B expression and clinical characteristics in lung adenocarcinoma based on The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and Oncomine dataset. Subsequently, cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, wound-healing analysis, and transwell method were performed to assess the effects of KIF18B in lung adenocarcinoma cells. Quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) and western blotting were utilized to measure the mRNA and protein expression levels. Our results illustrated that KIF18B expression was significantly up-regulated in lung adenocarcinoma samples compared to normal specimens. High levels of KIF18B were associated with unfavorable prognosis of lung adenocarcinoma patients. Down-regulation of KIF18B in lung adenocarcinoma cells inhibited cell prolifartion, migration, and invasion. Western blot assay demonstrated that KIF18B knockdown markedly decreased Rac1-GTP expression, an important marker of migration and invasion in tumors. Moreover, the phosphorylation of AKT and mTOR expression levels were attenuated after KIF18B knockdown. Taken together, these data enhanced the point that KIF18B might promote lung adenocarcinoma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion by activating Rac1 and mediating the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

PhERF2, an ethylene-responsive element binding factor, plays an essential role in waterlogging tolerance of petunia.

Ethylene-responsive element binding factors (ERFs) are involved in regulation of various stress responses in plants, but their biological functions in waterlogging stress are largely unclear. In this study, we identified a petunia (Petunia × hybrida) ERF gene, PhERF2, that was significantly induced by waterlogging in wild-type (WT). To study the regulatory role of PhERF2 in waterlogging responses, transgenic petunia plants with RNAi silencing and overexpression of PhERF2 were generated. Compared with WT plants, PhERF2 silencing compromised the tolerance of petunia seedlings to waterlogging, shown as 96% mortality after 4 days waterlogging and 14 days recovery, while overexpression of PhERF2 improved the survival of seedlings subjected to waterlogging. PhERF2-RNAi lines exhibited earlier and more severe leaf chlorosis and necrosis than WT, whereas plants overexpressing PhERF2 showed promoted growth vigor under waterlogging. Chlorophyll content was dramatically lower in PhERF2-silenced plants than WT or overexpression plants. Typical characteristics of programmed cell death (PCD), DNA condensation, and moon-shaped nuclei were only observed in PhERF2-overexpressing lines but not in PhERF2-RNAi or control lines. Furthermore, transcript abundances of the alcoholic fermentation-related genes ADH1-1, ADH1-2, ADH1-3, PDC1, and PDC2 were reduced in PhERF2-silenced plants, but increased in PhERF2-overexpressing plants following exposure to 12-h waterlogging. In contrast, expression of the lactate fermentation-related gene LDH was up-regulated in PhERF2-silenced plants, but down-regulated in its overexpressing plants. Moreover, PhERF2 was observed to directly bind to the ADH1-2 promoter bearing ATCTA motifs. Our results demonstrate that PhERF2 contributes to petunia waterlogging tolerance through modulation of PCD and alcoholic fermentation system.

Integrated bioinformatics analysis of As, Au, Cd, Pb and Cu heavy metal responsive marker genes through Arabidopsis thaliana GEO datasets.

BACKGROUND: Current environmental pollution factors, particularly the distribution and diffusion of heavy metals in soil and water, are a high risk to local environments and humans. Despite striking advances in methods to detect contaminants by a variety of chemical and physical solutions, these methods have inherent limitations such as small dimensions and very low coverage. Therefore, identifying novel contaminant biomarkers are urgently needed. METHODS: To better track heavy metal contaminations in soil and water, integrated bioinformatics analysis to identify biomarkers of relevant heavy metal, such as As, Cd, Pb and Cu, is a suitable method for long-term and large-scale surveys of such heavy metal pollutants. Subsequently, the accuracy and stability of the results screened were experimentally validated by quantitative PCR experiment. RESULTS: We obtained 168 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) which contained 59 up-regulated genes and 109 down-regulated genes through comparative bioinformatics analyses. Subsequently, the gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichments of these DEGs were performed, respectively. GO analyses found that these DEGs were mainly related to responses to chemicals, responses to stimulus, responses to stress, responses to abiotic stimulus, and so on. KEGG pathway analyses of DEGs were mainly involved in the protein degradation process and other biologic process, such as the phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathways and nitrogen metabolism. Moreover, we also speculated that nine candidate core biomarker genes (namely, NILR1, PGPS1, WRKY33, BCS1, AR781, CYP81D8, NR1, EAP1 and MYB15) might be tightly correlated with the response or transport of heavy metals. Finally, experimental results displayed that these genes had the same expression trend response to different stresses as mentioned above (Cd, Pb and Cu) and no mentioned above (Zn and Cr). CONCLUSION: In general, the identified biomarker genes could help us understand the potential molecular mechanisms or signaling pathways responsive to heavy metal stress in plants, and could be applied as marker genes to track heavy metal pollution in soil and water through detecting their expression in plants growing in those environments.

In silico-prediction of protein-protein interactions network about MAPKs and PP2Cs reveals a novel docking site variants in Brachypodium distachyon.

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) underlie the molecular mechanisms of most biological processes. Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) can be dephosphorylated by MAPK-specific phosphatases such as PP2C, which are critical to transduce extracellular signals into adaptive and programmed responses. However, the experimental approaches for identifying PPIs are expensive, time-consuming, laborious and challenging. In response, many computational methods have been developed to predict PPIs. Yet, these methods have inherent disadvantages such as high false positive and negative results. Thus, it is crucial to develop in silico approaches for predicting PPIs efficiently and accurately. In this study, we identified PPIs among 16 BdMAPKs and 86 BdPP2Cs in B. distachyon using a novel docking approach. Further, we systematically investigated the docking site (D-site) of BdPP2C which plays a vital role for recognition and docking of BdMAPKs. D-site analysis revealed that there were 96 pairs of PPIs including all BdMAPKs and most BdPP2Cs, which indicated that BdPP2C may play roles in other signaling networks. Moreover, most BdPP2Cs have a D-site for BdMAPKs in our prediction results, which suggested that our method can effectively predict PPIs, as confirmed by their 3D structure. In addition, we validated this methodology with known Arabidopsis and yeast phosphatase-MAPK interactions from the STRING database. The results obtained provide a vital research resource for exploring an accurate network of PPIs between BdMAPKs and BdPP2Cs.

Ectopic expression of a tobacco vacuolar invertase inhibitor in guard cells confers drought tolerance in Arabidopsis.

There are several hypotheses that explain stomatal behavior. These include the concept of osmoregulation mediated by potassium and its counterions malate and chlorine and the more recent starch-sugar hypothesis. We have previously reported that the activity of the sucrose cleavage enzyme, vacuolar invertase (VIN), is significantly higher in guard cells than in other leaf epidermal cells and its activity is correlated with stomatal aperture. Here, we examined whether VIN indeed controls stomatal movement under normal and drought conditions by transforming Arabidopsis with a tobacco vacuolar invertase inhibitor homolog (Nt-inhh) under the control of an abscisic acid-sensitive and guard cell-specific promoter (AtRab18). The data obtained showed that guard cells of transgenic Arabidopsis plants had lower VIN activity, stomatal aperture and conductance than that of wild-type plants. Moreover, the transgenic plants also displayed higher drought tolerance than wild-type plants. The data indicate that VIN is a promising target for manipulating stomatal function to increase drought tolerance.

Isolation of an alcohol dehydrogenase cDNA from and characterization of its expression in chrysanthemum under waterlogging.

A PCR strategy was used to isolate a full-length CgADH (alcohol dehydrogenase) cDNA from chrysanthemum. The gene putatively encodes a 378 residue polypeptides, which shares 95% homology with tomato alcohol dehydrogenase class III. Endogenous ethylene generated in waterlogged Chrysanthemum zawadskii was enhanced by exogenous ethylene but decreased by 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), an inhibitor of ethylene action. In waterlogged roots, the transcription of the gene encoding alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH, EC 1.1.1.1) increased rapidly but transiently, peaking at 7.5 fold the non-waterlogged level after 2h of stress. Waterlogging elevated ADH activity after a prolonged episode of stress. The exogenous supply of 40µLL(-1) ethylene suppressed the production of ethanol, while that of 4µLL(-1) 1-MCP enhanced it. Ethylene appeared to suppress an acceleration of both CgADH expression and fermentation, and alleviates ethanolic fermentation probably through by as a signal to acceleration of waterlogging-induced aerenchyma formation. This supports the previously observed phenomenon that the expression level of ADH gene is regulated by the local level of physiologically active ethylene. The relevance of the CgADH gene in relation to chrysanthemum waterlogging was discussed as well.

[The prevalence and risk factors of bronchiectasis in residents aged 40 years old and above in seven cities in China].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence and risk factors of bronchiectasis in urban city of China. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 17 urban areas in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing cities, and Guangdong, Liaoning, Shanxi provinces. In this study, urban population-based cluster samples were randomly selected from each city/province. In the selected city communities, all residents at least 40 years old were recruited, interviewed with questionnaires and tested with spirometry. Each participant was asked whether he/she was ever diagnosed as bronchiectasis by physician, whether had symptoms of respiratory diseases and possible risk factors, etc. RESULT: Data of 10 811 participants was enrolled for analysis, with a response rate of 75.4% (10 811/14 337). The overall prevalence of physician-diagnosed bronchiectasis was 1.2% (135/10 811), with 1.5% (65/4382) in male and 1.1% (70/6429) in female, without statistical difference in gender (χ² = 3.289, P = 0.070). Prevalence of bronchiectasis increased with age (χ² = 31.029, P < 0.001). There were no statistical significances in crude prevalences of bronchiectasis among cities (χ² = 10.572, P = 0.103), while there was a significant difference among cities after adjustment with confounders (Wald value = 22.116, P = 0.001), by using logistic regression analysis. Logistic regression analysis showed, bronchiectasis was significantly associated with elder ( ≥ 70 years vs 40-49 years; OR = 4.11, 95% CI 2.29-7.36), the family history of respiratory diseases (having two subjects with respiratory diseases in family vs no suffered relatives; OR = 2.04, 95% CI 1.06-3.94), respiratory infection during childhood (suffering two kinds of respiratory diseases vs never; OR = 4.89, 95% CI 2.03-11.81), exposure to coal (OR = 2.30, 95% CI 1.17-4.52), chronic pharyngitis (OR = 3.96, 95% CI 1.38-11.40) and pulmonary tuberculosis (OR = 3.07, 95% CI 1.89-4.98), heart diseases (OR = 1.64, 95% CI 1.11-2.42) and lung cancer(OR = 18.61, 95% CI 7.67-45.18). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of bronchiectasis in population aged 40 years old and above in urban area in China is high and associated with multiple factors such as age, family history of respiratory diseases, respiratory infection during childhood, exposure to coal, chronic pharyngitis, pulmonary tuberculosis, heart diseases, lung cancer and so on.

Asymptomatic patients of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in China.

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has a variable natural history and not all individuals follow the same course. This study aimed to identify the prevalence and characteristics of asymptomatic COPD patients from a population-based survey in China. METHODS: A multistage cluster sampling strategy was used in a population from seven different provinces/cities. All residents (over 40 years old) were interviewed with a standardized questionnaire and spirometry. Post-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV(1))/forced vital capacity (FVC) of less than 70% was defined as the diagnostic criterion of COPD. All COPD patients screened were divided into symptomatic group and asymptomatic group according to the presence or absence of chronic respiratory symptoms. Socio-demographic, personal and exposure variables were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Among the 1668 patients who were diagnosed with COPD from the 25 627 sampling subjects, 589 (35.3%) were asymptomatic. The age, sex, body mass index (BMI), rural and urban distributions, smoking habit and education levels were similar in the two groups. A total of 64.7% of the asymptomatic patients had no comorbidities. Cardiovascular diseases and lung cancer were more common among symptomatic COPD patients than asymptomatic group. Asymptomatic COPD group were less likely to present with poor ventilation in the kitchen, a family history of respiratory disease and recurrent childhood cough. Asymptomatic COPD patients had significantly higher FEV(1) (73.1% vs. 61.0%), FVC (91.9% vs. 82.0%), and a higher ratio of FEV(1)/FVC (62.9% vs. 58.7%) (all P < 0.001) than symptomatic group. More asymptomatic patients were underdiagnosed (91.9% vs. 54.3%, P < 0.001) than symptomatic patients. CONCLUSIONS: This large population-based survey confirmed a high prevalence of asymptomatic COPD patients in China. More use of spirometry screening test may be important to the early detection of COPD.

Evidence that high activity of vacuolar invertase is required for cotton fiber and Arabidopsis root elongation through osmotic dependent and independent pathways, respectively.

Vacuolar invertase (VIN) has long been considered as a major player in cell expansion. However, direct evidence for this view is lacking due, in part, to the complexity of multicellular plant tissues. Here, we used cotton (Gossypium spp.) fibers, fast-growing single-celled seed trichomes, to address this issue. VIN activity in elongating fibers was approximately 4-6-fold higher than that in leaves, stems, and roots. It was undetectable in fiberless cotton seed epidermis but became evident in initiating fibers and remained high during their fast elongation and dropped when elongation slowed. Furthermore, a genotype with faster fiber elongation had significantly higher fiber VIN activity and hexose levels than a slow-elongating genotype. By contrast, cell wall or cytoplasmic invertase activities did not show correlation with fiber elongation. To unravel the molecular basis of VIN-mediated fiber elongation, we cloned GhVIN1, which displayed VIN sequence features and localized to the vacuole. Once introduced to Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), GhVIN1 complemented the short-root phenotype of a VIN T-DNA mutant and enhanced the elongation of root cells in the wild type. This demonstrates that GhVIN1 functions as VIN in vivo. In cotton fiber, GhVIN1 expression level matched closely with VIN activity and fiber elongation rate. Indeed, transformation of cotton fiber with GhVIN1 RNA interference or overexpression constructs reduced or enhanced fiber elongation, respectively. Together, these analyses provide evidence on the role of VIN in cotton fiber elongation mediated by GhVIN1. Based on the relative contributions of sugars to sap osmolality in cotton fiber and Arabidopsis root, we conclude that VIN regulates their elongation in an osmotic dependent and independent manner, respectively.

[Current status of prevention and management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in rural area in China].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the current status of prevalence, prevention and management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in rural area in China. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of COPD was conducted in Beijing city, Shanghai city, Guangdong province, Liaoning province, Tianjin city, Chongqing province and Shanxi province. A population-based cluster sample was randomly selected from each rural area. In the selected community, all residents at least 40 years old were recruited, and interviewed with a modified standardized questionnaire from the international burden of obstructive lung diseases (BOLD) study. All participants were tested with spirometry. Those with airflow limitation were performed on post-bronchodilator spirometry. The post-bronchodilator a ratio of forced expiratory volume in one second to forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC) less than 70% was defined as the diagnostic criteria of COPD. RESULTS: (1) Data of 9434 participants was valid for analysis, with a valid response rate of 83.6%; the prevalence of COPD in rural was 8.8% (830/9434), 12.8% in male and 5.4% in female. (2) The percentage of smoking and the exposure to biomass smoke in rural was 43.0% (4059/9434) and 83.1% (7835/9434) respectively; cigarettes cessation rate was 17.5%; only 12.4% (502/4059) of smokers had received advice to quit smoking. (3) Among COPD patients, only 30.0% (249/830) had ever been diagnosed as COPD, bronchitis, emphysema, or asthma, 2.4% (20/830) had ever received spirometric tests, and 74.5% were current smokers; only 7.9% (50/634) COPD patients in stage two or over had received regular drug treatment. CONCLUSION: There was high prevalence and poor prevention and management for COPD in rural areas. Therefore, an enforced prevention and management for COPD are urgent.

[The quality of life of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and correlated factors].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the quality of life (QOL) of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and correlated factors. METHODS: Data of 20 245 patients with COPD were collected from the cross-sectional survey of COPD, which was conducted between 2002 and 2004 in urban and rural areas of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Liaoning, Tianjin, Chongqing and Shanxi for residents aged over 40 years old. The recruited populations were interviewed with questionnaire and tested for spirometry. The quality of life was assessed with 12-item short-form health survey questionnaire (SF-12). Those with less than 70% of post-bronchodilator FEV(1)/FVC were identified as having COPD. The differences between groups in SF-12 scores converted by rank were compared using general linear model. Stepwise multiple linear regressions were conducted to study the main determinants of QOL. RESULTS: Compared to subjects without COPD, those with COPD had impaired QOL (56 +/- 7 vs. 57 +/- 6 in mental component scores, F = 4.442, P < 0.05; 46 +/- 9 vs. 50 +/- 6 in physical component scores, F = 453.960, P < 0.05). Among COPD patients, the mental component score was associated with scores of dyspnea, BMI, comorbidities, sex and living areas, while the physical component score was associated with scores of dyspnea, severity of COPD, comorbidities, exposure to dusts/gases/fumes, sex, age, educational level and previous diagnosis of respiratory diseases (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The QOL in patients with COPD was impaired and associated with scores of dyspnea, severity of COPD, comorbidities and BMI. Improvement of dyspnea, nutritional support, prevention of comorbidities and keeping away from risk factors may improve the QOL in COPD patients.

Posttranslational elevation of cell wall invertase activity by silencing its inhibitor in tomato delays leaf senescence and increases seed weight and fruit hexose level.

Invertase plays multiple pivotal roles in plant development. Thus, its activity must be tightly regulated in vivo. Emerging evidence suggests that a group of small proteins that inhibit invertase activity in vitro appears to exist in a wide variety of plants. However, little is known regarding their roles in planta. Here, we examined the function of INVINH1, a putative invertase inhibitor, in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). Expression of a INVINH1:green fluorescent protein fusion revealed its apoplasmic localization. Ectopic overexpression of INVINH1 in Arabidopsis thaliana specifically reduced cell wall invertase activity. By contrast, silencing its expression in tomato significantly increased the activity of cell wall invertase without altering activities of cytoplasmic and vacuolar invertases. Elevation of cell wall invertase activity in RNA interference transgenic tomato led to (1) a prolonged leaf life span involving in a blockage of abscisic acid-induced senescence and (2) an increase in seed weight and fruit hexose level, which is likely achieved through enhanced sucrose hydrolysis in the apoplasm of the fruit vasculature. This assertion is based on (1) coexpression of INVINH1 and a fruit-specific cell wall invertase Lin5 in phloem parenchyma cells of young fruit, including the placenta regions connecting developing seeds; (2) a physical interaction between INVINH1 and Lin5 in vivo; and (3) a symplasmic discontinuity at the interface between placenta and seeds. Together, the results demonstrate that INVINH1 encodes a protein that specifically inhibits the activity of cell wall invertase and regulates leaf senescence and seed and fruit development in tomato by limiting the invertase activity in planta.

[A study on the correlation of body mass index with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and quality of life].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the correlation between body mass index (BMI) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), based on a cross-sectional COPD survey conducted in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Liaoning, Tianjin, Chongqing and Shaanxi of China between 2002-2004. METHODS: A multi-stage stratification cluster sampling strategy was used in this cross-sectional survey, and 20,245 subjects (8705 males and 11,540 females) aged 40 years or older were recruited, interviewed with a questionnaire, measured for height and weight, and tested with spirometry. 1668 subjects with post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC less than 70% were identified as having COPD after other known causes of airflow limitation were excluded. Analysis on relationship between COPD and BMI was performed in 1668 COPD and 18 577 non-COPD subjects. RESULTS: Compared with non-COPD subjects, BMI was significantly lower in COPD patients [(22.7+/-3.5) vs (24.1+/-3.4) kg/m2, F=158.31, P<0.01]; BMI was also significantly lower in smokers than in non-smokers [(23.6+/-3.4) vs (24.2+/-3.5) kg/m2, F=49.10, P<0.01]. And an addictive interaction to BMI between COPD and smoking was observed (F=6.03, P<0.05). BMI decreased with the increase of the stage of COPD (F=45.6, P<0.01), with a negative relationship (r=-0.08, P<0.01). Lower BMI was significantly associated with increased risk of COPD (chi2=102.68, P<0.01). Compared with subjects with normal BMI (BMI=24.0-27.9 kg/m2), those with lower BMI (BMI<18.5 kg/m2) were more likely to have COPD [adjusted OR=2.12 (95% CI 1.73-2.59)], while those with higher BMI (BMI=24.0-27.9 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI>or=28.0 kg/m2) were less likely to have COPD [adjusted OR=0.67 (95% CI 0.59-0.76); and 0.60 [(95% CI 0.49-0.73), respectively]. Moreover, there was an interaction to COPD between smoking and BMI (chi2=4.73, P<0.05). Compared with COPD patients with normal BMI, the quality of life in those with lower BMI was impaired (55+/-8 vs 57+/-6 in mental scores of SF-12, F=2.96, P<0.05; 42+/-10 vs 46+/-9 in physical scores of SF-12, F=4.21, P<0.01), and their dyspnea scores were higher (1.4+/-1.5 vs 1.1+/-1.3, chi2=14.32, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Lower BMI was strongly associated with COPD, possibly as a risk factor for COPD independent of smoking, and a potential predictor for COPD severity.

Atmnd1-delta1 is sensitive to gamma-irradiation and defective in meiotic DNA repair.

The efficient repair of double-strand breaks (DSBs) in genomic DNA is crucial for the survival of all organisms. Mnd1 is suggested to promote the strand invasion step during meiotic recombination. We used a forward genetics approach, through the search for mutants, to characterize the Arabidopsis homologue of Mnd1. Atmnd1 null mutants exhibit normal vegetative and flower development. In contrast, during prophase I, chromosomes become fragmented resulting in random distribution of the fragments between polyads. Male and female meiosis are defective and strong accumulation of AtRAD51 was observed in atmnd1-delta1 nuclei. These results suggest that similarly to its yeast and animal homologues, AtMnd1 plays a role in DSB repair during meiosis. In addition, like its human homologue AtMnd1 is expressed in somatic cells. AtMnd1 expression is strongly induced by gamma-rays and null mutants show increased sensibility to gamma-rays. Taken together, these results suggest that AtMnd1 is also required for DSB repair in somatic cells.

[The risk factors for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in females in Chinese rural areas].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the risk factors for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in females in Chinese rural areas. METHODS: Based on a national multi-center, population-based and cross-sectional survey on prevalence of COPD in seven provinces/cities of China, an analysis on the risk factors for the rural females was conducted in six areas, e.g. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Liaoning, Tianjin and Shanxi. In the national survey, for each area, one rural and one urban cluster samples were randomly selected using a multi-stage strategy. Residents who were 40 years old or older were interviewed with questionnaires and tested with spirometry. The post-bronchodilators forced expired volume in one second to forced vital capacity ratio (FEV(1)/FVC) x 100% < 70% was used as diagnostic criteria of COPD. RESULTS: The average prevalence of COPD in females in the six Chinese rural areas was 5.4%. The prevalence varied with risk factor exposure among different areas, and the prevalence in Guangdong province was the highest among all areas. Logistic regression model was conducted, and statistical association of COPD was found with a family history of respiratory diseases (OR = 2.46, 95% CI = 1.86 - 3.26), frequent coughing during childhood (frequent coughing vs never coughing: OR = 3.93, 95% CI = 2.02 - 7.63), lower body mass index (lower body mass index vs normal body mass index: OR = 2.20, 95% CI = 1.47 - 3.29), age (70 years or older vs 40 - 49 years: OR = 8.98, 95% CI = 5.90 - 13.67), smoking (OR = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.20 - 2.35), exposure to occupational dusts (OR = 1.45, 95% CI = 1.07 - 1.96), worse ventilation in kitchen room (OR = 1.47, 95% CI = 1.06 - 2.03) and lower educational level (OR = 2.19, 95% CI = 1.38 - 3.46). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of COPD in females in rural areas was associated with multiple factors and prevention of COPD for Chinese women in rural areas is warranted.

[Cost analysis of Shenqi Fuzheng injection on reducing adverse effects during chemotherapy].

OBJECTIVE: The goals of this work was to analyse the cost of Shenqi Fuzheng injection-an extraction of a Chinese traditional herbs on reducing adverse effects in lung cancer patients during chemotherapy. METHODS: In a randomized cross-over trial, each patient completed two identical cisplatin-based chemotherapy cycles, one with Shenqi Fuzheng injection, another without Shenqi Fuzheng injection. Adverse effects and change scores of quality of life (QOL) during chemotherapy were compared in tow cycles. The direct cost dealing with adverse effect and cost-effectiveness analysis were taken. RESULTS: One hundred and thirty were enrolled with 123 of whom were evaluable. The patient characteristics were well balanced between the two groups. The chemotherapy cycles with Shenqi Fuzheng injection spent 220.5 more Chinese yuan, but the adverse effect of leukopenia, thrombocytopenia and vomiting were slight different and the change of score of several QOL domains showed significant better as compared to those in another cycle. CONCLUSION: Shenqi Fuzheng injection could reduce the severity of toxicity related to chemotherapy and improve the QOL of patients and had some benefits in terms of cost-effectiveness.