Integrated analysis of differentially expressed genes and miRNA expression profiles in dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: Although dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a prevalent form of cardiomyopathy, the molecular mechanisms underlying its pathogenesis and progression remain poorly understood. It is possible to identify and validate DCM-associated genes, pathways, and miRNAs using bioinformatics analysis coupled with clinical validation methods. Methods: Our analysis was performed using 3 mRNA datasets and 1 miRNA database. We employed several approaches, including gene ontology (GO) analysis, KEGG pathway enrichment analysis, protein-protein interaction networks analysis, and analysis of hub genes to identify critical genes and pathways linked to DCM. We constructed a regulatory network for DCM that involves interactions between miRNAs and mRNAs. We also validated the differently expressed miRNAs in clinical samples (87 DCM ，83 Normal) using qRT-PCR.The miRNAs' clinical value was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic curves (ROCs). Results: 78 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 170 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) were associated with DCM. The top five GO annotations were collagen-containing extracellular matrix, cell substrate adhesion, negative regulation of cell differentiation, and inflammatory response. The most enriched KEGG pathways were the Neurotrophin signaling pathway, Thyroid hormone signaling pathway, Wnt signaling pathway, and Axon guidance. In the PPI network, we identified 10 hub genes, and in the miRNA-mRNA regulatory network, we identified 8 hub genes and 15 miRNAs. In the clinical validation, we found 13 miRNAs with an AUC value greater than 0.9. Conclusion: Our research offers novel insights into the underlying mechanisms of DCM and has implications for identifying potential targets for diagnosis and treatment of this condition.

Recent advances in small-molecule fluorescent probes for studying ferroptosis.

Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent, non-apoptotic form of programmed cell death driven by excessive lipid peroxidation (LPO). Mounting evidence suggests that the unique modality of cell death is involved in the development and progression of several diseases including cancer, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), neurodegenerative disorders, etc. However, the pathogenesis and signalling pathways of ferroptosis are not fully understood, possibly due to the lack of robust tools for the highly selective and sensitive imaging of ferroptosis analytes in complex living systems. Up to now, various small-molecule fluorescent probes have been applied as promising chemosensors for studying ferroptosis through tracking the biomolecules or microenvironment-related parameters in vitro and in vivo. In this review, we comprehensively reviewed the recent development of small-molecule fluorescent probes for studying ferroptosis, with a focus on the analytes, design strategies and bioimaging applications. We also provided new insights to overcome the major challenges in this emerging field.

Foam flushing with soil vapor extraction for enhanced treatment of diesel contaminated soils in a one-dimensional column.

A limitation of soil vapor extraction (SVE) remediation for total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) in the unsaturated zone is the inability to remove the less volatile petroleum mixture compounds in diesel fuel. SVE combined with foam flushing may have the potential to enhance dissolution or mobilization of soil sorbed diesel and allow mobilized diesel to move to the SVE extraction well. A nonionic surfactant polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monooleate (TW80) was selected for generating foam, and a procedure to incorporate the oxidant sodium persulfate (SPS) in generating TW80/SPS foam to deliver chemical oxidation, was also studied. Both TW80 and TW80/SPS foams exhibited 96-98% quality under 8-32 mM of TW80 and 10-50 mM of SPS. The addition of SPS in TW80 solution resulted in elevated ionic content and degradation of TW80, which may reduce the foam stability and have minor effects on foam quality. Through analysis of interrelationships among column flushing experimental parameters, it was shown that the foam quality was reduced to 42-47% when foam flushed through a diesel contaminated soil column. Moreover, the results of column flushing tests operated for 12 h indicated that the effectiveness of removal of diesel by different foams followed the order of TW80 foam (53%) > TW80/SPS foam (37%) >N2 gas flow alone (3%). It was shown that foam flushing could be an alternative approach, rather than using N2 gas flow alone (SVE), in enhancing SVE for reducing diesel contamination in the unsaturated zone.

Is Mg-stabilized amorphous calcium carbonate a homogeneous mixture of amorphous magnesium carbonate and amorphous calcium carbonate?

We find two types of carbonate ions in Mg stabilized amorphous calcium carbonate (Mg-ACC), whose short-range orders are identical to those of ACC and amorphous magnesium carbonate (AMC). Mg-ACC comprises a homogeneous mixture of the nano-clusters of ACC and AMC. Their relative amount varies systematically at different pH.

Study of Binding Interaction between Pif80 Protein Fragment and Aragonite.

Pif is a crucial protein for the formation of the nacreous layer in Pinctada fucata. Three non-acidic peptide fragments of the aragonite-binding domain (Pif80) are selected, which contain multiple copies of the repeat sequence DDRK, to study the interaction between non-acidic peptides and aragonite. The polypeptides DDRKDDRKGGK (Pif80-11) and DDRKDDRKGGKDDRKDDRKGGK (Pif80-22) have similar binding affinity to aragonite. Solid-state NMR data indicate that the backbones of Pif80-11 and Pif80-22 peptides bound on aragonite adopt a random-coil conformation. Pif80-11 is a lot more effective than Pif80-22 in promoting the nucleation of aragonite on the substrate of ß-chitin. Our results suggest that the structural arrangement at a protein-mineral interface depends on the surface structure of the mineral substrate and the protein sequence. The side chains of the basic residues, which function as anchors to the aragonite surface, have uniform structures. The role of basic residues as anchors in protein-mineral interaction may play an important role in biomineralization.

[Effects of different factors on direct induction of microtubers from explants in Pinellia ternate].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of different factors on direct induction of microtubers. These factors included plant growth substances, casein hydrolysate (CH), active carbon (AC), polyethylene glycol (PEG 4000), sucrose and glucose. METHOD: Using the orthogonal design method. RESULT AND CONCLUSION: The optimal media to directly induce microtubers from leaves were MS + MET 0.5 mg x L(-1) + 6-BA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + sucrose 3% and MS+ 6-BA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + IAA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + sucrose 3%. Optimal media to directly induce microtubers from tubers were MS + 6-BA 1.0 mg x L(-1) + PEG 5% + sucrose 5% and MS+ CH 500 mg x L(-1) + MET 0.5 mg x L(-1) + 6-BA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + AC 0.5% + sucrose 5%. Media suitable for plantlet growth were MS + 6-BA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + IAA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + AC 0.5% + sucrose 5% and MS + MET 0.5 mg x L(-1) + 6-BA 0.5 mg x L(-1) + sucrose 3%.