Nutrient intake determines post-maturity molting in the golden orb-web spider Nephila pilipes (Araneae: Araneidae).

While molting occurs in the development of many animals, especially arthropods, post-maturity molting (PMM, organisms continue to molt after sexual maturity) has received little attention. The mechanism of molting has been studied intensively; however, the mechanism of PMM remains unknown although it is suggested to be crucial for the development of body size. In this study, we investigated factors that potentially induce PMM in the golden orb-web spider Nephila pilipes, which has the greatest degree of sexual dimorphism among terrestrial animals. We manipulated the mating history and the nutrient consumption of the females to examine whether they affect PMM. The results showed that female spiders under low nutrition were more likely to molt as adults, and mating had no significant influence on the occurrence of PMM. Moreover, spiders that underwent PMM lived longer than those that did not and their body sizes were significantly increased. Therefore, we concluded that nutritional condition rather than mating history affect PMM.

[Changes of left ventricular remodeling in hypertension patients with carotid atherosclerosis of phlegm-dampness syndrome].

OBJECTIVE: To study changes of left ventricular remodeling (LVR) in hypertension patients with carotid atherosclerosis (CAS) of phlegm-dampness syndrome (PDS). METHODS: Doppler ultrasonography data of CAS were observed in 223 hypertension patients with CAS (as the hypertension group, including 119 patients of the PDS group and 104 of the non-PDS group), 81 CAS patients with non-hypertension, and 19 non-hypertension non-CAS patients (as the control group). The difference in the degree of LVR was compared among the above groups. RESULTS: The left ventricular posterior wall thickness (LVPWT), inter ventricular septum thickness (IVS), E/A were higher in the hypertension group than in the non-hypertension group (P < 0.05). The left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (LVEDD), left ventricular end-systolic diameter (LVESD), stroke volume (SV) were higher in the soft plaque hypertension group and the soft plaque non-hypertension group than in the hard plaque group, the thickening intimal group, and the normal intimal group (P < 0.01 , P < 0.05). The LVEDD, LVESD, and SV were higher, and the ejection fraction (EF) was lower in the PDS hypertension group than in the non-PDS hypertension group (all P < 0.05). Of them, LVEDD, LVESD, and SV were higher in the soft plaque group than in the hard plaque group (P < 0.01), the thickening intimal group (P < 0.01) and the normal intimal group (P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference in PDS hypertension between the soft plaque group and the hard plaque group (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The hypertension patients with CAS of PDS might be correlated to LVR, and LVR was more obviously in the soft plaque patients.

A national-scale assessment of land subsidence in China's major cities.

China's massive wave of urbanization may be threatened by land subsidence. Using a spaceborne synthetic aperture radar interferometry technique, we provided a systematic assessment of land subsidence in all of China's major cities from 2015 to 2022. Of the examined urban lands, 45% are subsiding faster than 3 millimeters per year, and 16% are subsiding faster than 10 millimeters per year, affecting 29 and 7% of the urban population, respectively. The subsidence appears to be associated with a range of factors such as groundwater withdrawal and the weight of buildings. By 2120, 22 to 26% of China's coastal lands will have a relative elevation lower than sea level, hosting 9 to 11% of the coastal population, because of the combined effect of city subsidence and sea-level rise. Our results underscore the necessity of enhancing protective measures to mitigate potential damages from subsidence.

Surveillance and Outcomes of Pediatric Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Recipients During the Recent COVID-19 Outbreak in China.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic presents challenges for healthcare systems globally, especially in vulnerable populations such as pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients. This study examines the clinical characteristics and outcomes of COVID-19 infection in pediatric HSCT recipients within one year post-HSCT. Methods: Retrospective analysis was conducted on data from 247 pediatric patients. None of them had received SARS-CoV-2 vaccination or had prior infection. SARS-CoV-2 infection was confirmed using RT-PCR testing. COVID-19 disease severity was categorized according to established guidelines. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, imaging and treatment data were collected. Results: The median age of the cohort was 7±3.7 years, with thalassemia major as the predominant underlying disease. Allogeneic HSCT was performed in the majority of cases, with haploidentical donors being the most common source of grafts. Nearly half of the patients developed COVID-19, with significantly higher infection rates observed in recipients over 100 days compared to recipients within 100 days post-HSCT (40.1% vs 21.7%, p<0.05, Fisher's Exact test). Fever (n=107, 43.2%) and cough (n=88, 35.6%) were the most common symptoms. While most patients had mild disease and did not require specific anti-viral treatment, a significant proportion required hospitalization (n=34, 13.8%). Various treatments were employed hospitalized patients, including Paxlovid (n=19, 55.9%), methylprednisolone (n=7, 20.6%), IL-6 antibody (n=2, 5.9%), mesenchymal stem cells (n=3, 8.8%), and exosomes nebulization therapy (n=2, 5.9%). Despite multidisciplinary approaches, one patient died from severe respiratory failure. However, overall survival of all patients remained high (99.53%; CI 96.72-99.93%), indicating favorable outcomes in pediatric HSCT recipients with COVID-19. Conclusion: This study provides insights into clinical features, therapeutic measures, and outcomes of pediatric HSCT recipients following COVID-19 infection in a large HSCT center in China. These findings contribute to our understanding of COVID-19 in this population and inform strategies to mitigate the impact the pandemic's impact on their care.

Variations in leaf and stem traits across two elevations in subtropical forests.

Understanding the variations in plant traits across elevations may provide valuable insights into the species structure and function of forests and their responses to climate change. To explore the patterns of trait variation across elevations, we analysed 14 leaf and stem traits associated with resource acquisition and stress tolerance in Schima superba Gardner & Champion, Castanopsis chinensis (Sprengel) Hance, and Pinus massoniana Lambert trees at two elevations in a subtropical forest in southern China. Wood density increased, whereas crown width, leaf water potential at 0700 hours (Ψ L-0700 ), and leaf δ 18 O decreased in high-elevation plants. Vessel diameter, daily maximum sap flux density, leaf δ 13 C, and leaf C and N concentrations per unit mass were comparable across elevations. We found species-specific variations in specific leaf area, midday leaf water potential, and leaf P concentration across elevations. Decreasing crown width with increasing elevation was associated with decreasing leaf δ 18 O and Ψ L-0700 , suggesting that higher stomatal conductance may moderate the loss of carbon assimilation. We elucidated the adaptive strategies of plants in response to environmental change, and showed that physiological traits varied in coordination with structural traits. Future studies incorporating multi-dimensional trait analyses can improve our understanding of the responses of forest ecosystems to climate change and global warming.

Live-cell imaging of genomic loci with Cas9 variants.

BACKGROUND: Endonuclease-deactivated clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-associated nuclease (dCas9) has been repurposed for live-cell imaging of genomic loci. Engineered or evolved dCas9 variants have been developed to increase the applicability of the CRISPR/dCas9 system. However, there have been no systematic comparisons of these dCas9 variants in terms of their performance in the visualization of genomic loci. MAIN METHODS AND MAJOR RESULTS: Here we demonstrate that dSpCas9 and its variants deSpCas9(1.1), dSpCas9-HF1, devoCas9, and dxCas9(3.7) can be used for CRISPR-based live-cell genomic imaging. dSpCas9 had the greatest utility, with a high labeling efficiency of repetitive sequences-including those with a low number of repeats-and good compatibility with target RNA sequences at the MUC4 locus that varied in length from 13 to 23 nucleotides. We combined CRISPR-Tag with the dSpCas9 imaging system to observe the dynamics of the Tet promoter and found that its movement was restricted when it was active. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: These novel Cas9 variants provide a new set of tools for investigating the spatiotemporal regulation of gene expression through live imaging of genomic sites.

HOPX Is an Epigenetically Inactivated Tumor Suppressor and Overexpression of HOPX Induce Apoptosis and Cell Cycle Arrest in Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Evidence has been shown that abnormal DNA methylation plays a vital role in the progression of breast cancer via silencing of gene expression. The results of bisulfite sequencing showed that the methylation status of HOPX in breast cancer tissues was higher than that in normal breast cancer tissues, but little known about the biological functions of HOPX in breast cancer. METHODS: A total of 13 paired breast cancer and adjacent noncancerous tissues were subjected to bisulfite sequencing. Meanwhile, the methylation levels of cg218995965 and cg24862548 in breast cancer cells were detected by methylation-specific PCR (MSP). Flow cytometry, wound healing and transwell invasion assays were used to detect the apoptosis, migration and invasion in breast cancer cells. In addition, the expressions of HOPX, p21, cyclin D1 and CDK4 in cells were detected with Western blot assay. RESULTS: Bisulfite sequencing indicated that the CpG sites (cg218995965 and cg24862548) in the HOPX promoter region showed significantly higher methylation in breast cancer tissues. In addition, methylation-specific PCR revealed that HOPX was significantly hypermethylated in breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-468 and MCF-7. Furthermore, overexpression of HOPX significantly inhibited the proliferation of MDA-MB-468 and MCF-7 cells via inducing the apoptosis. Moreover, upregulation of HOPX markedly inhibited the migration and invasion abilities of MDA-MB-468 cells. Meanwhile, overexpression of HOPX obviously induced cell cycle arrest in MDA-MB-468 cells via upregulation of p21, and downregulation of cyclin D1 and CDK4. Additionally, overexpression of HOPX suppressed tumor growth of breast cancer in vivo. CONCLUSION: Our data showed that HOPX, a tumor suppressor, is epigenetically silenced in breast cancer. Overexpression of HOPX could suppress the progression of breast cancer, and thus indicating that it might serve as a potential target for the treatment of patients with breast cancer.

Characterization of astrocytes and microglial cells in the hippocampal CA1 region after transient focal cerebral ischemia in rats treated with Ilexonin A.

Ilexonin A is a compound isolated from the root of Ilex pubescens, a traditional Chinese medicine. Ilexonin A has been shown to play a neuroprotective role by regulating the activation of astrocytes and microglia in the peri-infarct area after ischemia. However, the effects of ilexonin A on astrocytes and microglia in the infarct-free region of the hippocampal CA1 region remain unclear. Focal cerebral ischemia models were established by 2-hour occlusion of the middle cerebral artery in rats. Ilexonin A (20, 40 or 80 mg/kg) was administered immediately after ischemia/reperfusion. The astrocyte marker glial fibrillary acidic protein, microglia marker Iba-1, neural stem cell marker nestin and inflammation markers were detected by immunohistochemistry and western blot assay. Expression levels of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin 1ß were determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay in the hippocampal CA1 tissue. Astrocytes were activated immediately in progressively increasing numbers from 1, 3, to 7 days post-ischemia/reperfusion. The number of activated astrocytes further increased in the hippocampal CA1 region after treatment with ilexonin A. Microglial cells remained quiescent after ischemia/reperfusion, but became activated after treatment with ilexonin A. Ilexonin A enhanced nestin expression and reduced the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin 1ß in the hippocampus post-ischemia/reperfusion. The results of the present study suggest that ilexonin A has a neuroprotective effect in the hippocampus after ischemia/reperfusion, probably through regulating astrocytes and microglia activation, promoting neuronal stem cell proliferation and reducing the levels of pro-inflammatory factors. This study was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of the Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, China.