Genome-wide association study and transcriptome of olecranon-type traits in peach (Prunus persica L.) germplasm.

BACKGROUND: The top of the olecranon honey peach (Prunus persica L.) fruit appears similar to an eagle's beak. In this study, a single olecranon honey peach with a round-type fruit was observed in our fruit orchard. To explore the genetic mechanism of olecranon formation, we performed full-length transcriptome sequencing analysis of olecranon and round peaches as well as a genome-wide association study of the association of olecranon-type trait loci. RESULTS: The gene locus was 26,924,482 base pairs in NC_034014.1. Transcriptome sequencing showed that the clean sequencing data of each sample reached 7.10GB, with 14,360 genes and 23,167 transcripts expressed in both the olecranon honey peach and round peach. Among the 11 differentially expressed genes selected as candidate genes, six were highly expressed in olecranon peach and named as LOC18775282, LOC18772209, LOC18773929, LOC18772013, LOC18773401, and ONT.13798.5. Five genes were highly expressed in round peach and named as LOC18773079, LOC18773525, LOC18773067, LOC18775244, and LOC18772236. Notably, ONT.13798.5 was not previously identified. The genes were within 1 Mb up- or down-stream of the main genome-wide association study locus for olecranon-type traits. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed loci associated with olecranon and provides useful information for analysis and breeding of olecranon honey peach.

Green Emission of Tb-doped Mg-Al Layered Double Hydroxide Response to L-lysine.

The paper describes a study on the green emission of a Tb-doped Mg-Al layered double hydroxide (Tb-LDH) response to L-lysine (Lys). Fluorescent study was found that the Tb-LDH exhibited strong green emission due to (5)D4-(7)FJ (J = 5, 6) transition of Tb(3+), and the green emission almost quenched while the Tb-LDH was exposed to 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.25, and 0.5 mol·L(-1) Lys solution, respectively. Meanwhile the emission attributed to Lys markedly increased as the Tb-LDH was exposed to 0.01 and 0.05 mol·L(-1) Lys solution, then decreased as the concentration of Lys solution further increased to 0.5 from 0.05 mol·L(-1). The green emission of Tb-LDH optimal response to Lys happened at 0.05 mol·L(-1) of Lys solution. XRD results revealed that no reflections ascribed to Lys appeared in the composites of Tb-LDH and Lys. IR spectra suggested that the IR spectra of Tb-LDH obviously changed after it was exposed to Lys solution. These results indicated that the green emission of Tb-LDH response to Lys was possibly owing to interaction between the Tb-LDH and Lys. Moreover, this interaction between the Tb-LDH and Lys may be resulted from absorption. The green emission of Tb-LDH response to Lys would be potential application in detecting L-lysine.

Myeloid-derived suppressor cell function is diminished in aspirin-triggered allergic airway hyperresponsiveness in mice.

BACKGROUND: Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) have recently been implicated in the pathogenesis of asthma, but their regulation in patients with aspirin-intolerant asthma (AIA) remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: We sought to characterize MDSC accumulation and pathogenic functions in allergic airway inflammation mediated by COX-1 deficiency or aspirin treatment in mice. METHODS: Allergic airway inflammation was induced in mice by means of ovalbumin challenge. The distribution and function of MDSCs in mice were analyzed by using flow cytometry and pharmacologic/gene manipulation approaches. RESULTS: CD11b(+)Gr1(high)Ly6G(+)Ly6C(int) MDSCs (polymorphonuclear MDSCs [PMN-MDSCs]) recruited to the lungs are negatively correlated with airway inflammation in allergen-challenged mice. Aspirin-treated and COX-1 knockout (KO) mice showed significantly lower accumulation of PMN-MDSCs in the inflamed lung and immune organs accompanied by increased TH2 airway responses. The TH2-suppressive function of PMN-MDSCs was notably impaired by COX-1 deletion or inhibition, predominantly through downregulation of arginase-1. COX-1-derived prostaglandin E2 promoted PMN-MDSC generation in bone marrow through E prostanoid 2 and 4 receptors (EP2 and EP4), whereas the impaired arginase-1 expression in PMN-MDSCs in COX-1 KO mice was mediated by dysregulation of the prostaglandin E2/EP4/cyclic AMP/protein kinase A pathway. EP4 agonist administration alleviated allergy-induced airway hyperresponsiveness in COX-1 KO mice. Moreover, the immunosuppressive function of PMN-MDSCs from patients with AIA was dramatically decreased compared with that from patients with aspirin-tolerant asthma. CONCLUSION: The immunosuppressive activity of PMN-MDSCs was diminished in both allergen-challenged COX-1 KO mice and patients with AIA, probably through an EP4-mediated signaling pathway, indicating that activation of PMN-MDSCs might be a promising therapeutic strategy for asthma, particularly AIA.

Antibacterial mechanism of the Asp-Asp-Asp-Tyr peptide.

Previously, we found that ASP-ASP-ASP-TYR (DDDY) from Dendrobium aphyllum has a minimum inhibitory concentration of 36.15 mg/mL against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Here, we explored the antibacterial mechanism of DDDY and its potential preservation applications. Metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses revealed that DDDY mainly affects genes involved in P. aeruginosa membrane transport and amino acid metabolism pathways. Molecular dynamics simulation revealed that DDDY had a stronger effect on 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine phospholipid membranes than on 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-lecithin or 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl phosphatidylglycerol membranes, with high DDDY concentrations displaying stronger efficacy on 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine. Mechanistically, the N-terminal of DDDY first bound to the phospholipid head group, while its C-terminal amino acid residue bound the hydrophobic tail, thereby creating a gap in the membrane when the phospholipids were clustered by hydrogen bonding. Finally, DDDY inhibited the growth of food microorganisms inoculated onto chestnut kernels, suggesting that DDDY is a promising antibacterial agent against multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacteria.

Nutritive quality prediction of peaches during storage.

Peaches (Prunus persica L. Batsch) are commonly consumed fruits with high nutritional value. We evaluated the nutritive qualities of peach fruit during storage. Heatmap analysis showed that protein, ash, and crude fiber contents clustered together, whereas fat and reducing sugars clustered separately. We then classified the nutrients into two clusters; cluster 1 showed low fat and reducing sugar levels and high protein, crude fiber, and ash levels, whereas cluster 2 showed high fat and reducing sugar levels and low protein, cruder fiber, and ash levels. Partial least squares regression and random forest analyses showed accuracies of 67% and 61%, respectively. Spectra at 1,439 and 1,440 nm indicated reducing sugars, and the spectrum at 2,172 nm indicated protein. Thus, Fourier transform-near infrared spectroscopy could predict the two clusters based on five nutritive qualities. Our findings may help to establish guidelines for promoting the acceptability of peach fruits among consumers.

[Effects of straw returning on the integrated soil fertility and crop yield in southern China].

Based on the data from 94 experiments of straw returning in Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Guangxi, Sichuan, and Chongqing, and by using mathematic modeling approach, this paper evaluated the effects of straw returning on the soil fertility and crop yield in southern China. Obvious regional differences were observed in the soil fertility index (SFI) and crop yield response. In study area, the croplands with the SFI of Grade III and Grade IV were predominant, occupying 69.1% and 21.3% of the total, respectively. Averagely, straw returning increased the SFI and crop yield by 6.8% and 4.4%, respectively, as compared with the control (no straw returning). The SFI was significantly linearly correlated with rice yield, and could well reflect the integrated soil fertility in study area. At present, straw returning with decomposing agent added is one of the most important measures to improve the integrated soil fertility in southern China, which should be widely popularized.

[Expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-1 in renal tissues of patients with chronic active antibody-mediated renal graft rejection].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expressions of matrix metalloprotein-2 (MMP-2) and tissue inhibitor of metallopeptidase inhibitor-1 (TIMP-1) in the renal allografts of patients with chronic active antibody-mediated rejection (ABMR), and explore their role in the pathogenesis of ABMR. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry and computer-assisted image analysis were used to detect the expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-1 in the renal allografts of 46 patients with interstitial fibrosis and tubular atrophy (IF/TA), with 15 normal renal tissue specimens as the control. The association of MMP-2 and TIMP-1 with the pathological grade of IF/TA in ABMR was analyzed. RESULTS: The expressions of MMP-2 and TIMP-1 significantly increased in the renal tissues of the patients as compared with the normal renal tissues (P<0.05). MMP-2 expression tended to decrease, while TIMP-1 and serum creatinine increased with the pathological grades of IF/TA (P<0.05). In IF/TA group, the expression of TIMP-1 was positively correlated to serum creatinine level (r=0.718, P=0.00<0.05). CONCLUSION: Abnormal expressions of MMP-2 and TIMP-1 can promote the development of renal fibrosis in chronic ABMR.

[Variations of soil fertility level in red soil region under long-term fertilization].

Based on the long-term (1982-2007) field experiment of "anthropogenic mellowing of raw soil" at the Qiyang red soil experimental station under Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and by using numerical theory, this paper studied the variations of the fertility level of granite red soil, quaternary red soil, and purple sandy shale soil under six fertilization patterns. The fertilization patterns included non-fertilization (CK), straw-returning without fertilizers (CKR), chemical fertilization (NPK), NPK plus straw-return (NPKR), rice straw application (M), and M plus straw-return (MR). The soil integrated fertility index (IFI) was significantly positively correlated with relative crop yield, and could better indicate soil fertility level. The IFI values of the three soils all were in the order of NPK, NPKR > M, MR > CK, CKR, with the highest value in treatment NPKR (0.77, 0.71, and 0.71 for granite red soil, quaternary red soil, and purple sandy shale soil, respectively). Comparing with that in the treatments of no straw-return, the IFI value in the treatments of straw return was increased by 6.72%-18.83%. A turning point of the IFI for all the three soils was observed at about 7 years of anthropogenic mellowing, and the annual increasing rate of the IFI was in the sequence of purple sandy shale soil (0.016 a(-1)) > quaternary red clay soil (0.011 a(-1)) > granite red soil (0.006 a(-1)). It was suggested that a combined application of organic and chemical fertilizers and/or straw return could be an effective and fast measure to enhance the soil fertility level in red soil region.