The effect of environmental factors on the genetic differentiation of Cucurbita ficifolia populations based on whole-genome resequencing.

BACKGROUND: Cucurbita ficifolia is one of the squash species most resistant to fungal pathogens, and has especially high resistance to melon Fusarium wilt. This species is therefore an important germplasm resource for the breeding of squash and melon cultivars. RESULTS: Whole-genome resequencing of 223 individuals from 32 populations in Yunnan Province, the main cucurbit production area in China, was performed and 3,855,120 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 1,361,000 InDels were obtained. SNP analysis suggested that levels of genetic diversity in C. ficifolia were high, but that different populations showed no significant genetic differentiation or geographical structure, and that individual C. ficifolia plants with fruit rinds of a similar color did not form independent clusters. A Mantel test conducted in combination with geographical distance and environmental factors suggested that genetic distance was not correlated with geographical distance, but had a significant correlation with environmental distance. Further associations between the genetic data and five environmental factors were analyzed using whole-genome association analysis. SNPs associated with each environmental factor were investigated and genes 250 kb upstream and downstream from associated SNPs were annotated. Overall, 15 marker-trait-associated SNPs (MTAs) and 293 genes under environmental selection were identified. The identified genes were involved in cell membrane lipid metabolism, macromolecular complexes, catalytic activity and other related aspects. Ecological niche modeling was used to simulate the distribution of C. ficifolia across time, from the present and into the future. We found that the area suitable for C. ficifolia changed with the changing climate in different periods. CONCLUSIONS: Resequencing of the C. ficifolia accessions has allowed identification of genetic markers, such as SNPs and InDels. The SNPs identified in this study suggest that environmental factors mediated the formation of the population structure of C. ficifolia in China. These SNPs and Indels might also contribute to the variation in important pathways of genes for important agronomic traits such as yield, disease resistance and stress tolerance. Moreover, the genome resequencing data and the genetic markers identified from 223 accessions provide insight into the genetic variation of the C. ficifolia germplasm and will facilitate a broad range of genetic studies.

Xinshuaining preparation protects H9c2 cells from H2O2-induced oxidative damage through the PI3K/Akt/Nrf-2 signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death. Oxidative stress is an important pathological process of a variety of CVDs. Xinshuaining preparation has a therapeutic effect on the heart failure. However, the anti-oxidative stress role of Xinshuaining preparation in H9c2 cells is still unclear. METHODS: The medicated serum of Xinshuaining preparation was acquired and utilized to hatch with H2O2-induced H9c2 cells. Main components in the Xinshuaining preparation were analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS). The effect of medicated serum on the cell viability, apoptosis rate, the oxidative stress indicators (SOD, GSH-Px, and MDA), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and ROS level was evaluated by CCK-8, flow cytometry, commercial biochemical detection kits, and JC-1 staining. Additionally, the associated mechanism was determined by the detection of the protein levels (PI3K, phosphorylated PI3K, Akt, phosphorylated Akt, and Nrf-2) through western blot assays, which was also further assessed with the application of LY294002. RESULTS: The medicated serum of Xinshuaining preparation notably increased the H2O2-reduced, the cell viability, the concentration of SOD and GSH-Px, MMP level and the relative protein expression level of phosphorylated PI3K and Akt and Nrf-2, while dampened the H2O2-elevated the level of the cell apoptosis rate, MDA, and ROS. However, Xinshuaining preparation on the cell viability, apoptosis, and oxidative stress was notably antagonized by LY294002 pre-treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The medicated serum of Xinshuaining preparation increased the cell viability and suppressed apoptosis and oxidative stress via the PI3K/Akt/Nrf-2 signaling pathway.

Oxycodone-acetaminophen versus celecoxib for postoperative pain in knee osteoarthritis patients after total knee arthroplasty: a randomized, controlled study.

PURPOSE: Oxycodone-acetaminophen is a synergic combination of semisynthetic opioid agonis and analgesic/antipyretic agent, which improves analgesic efficacy. This randomized, controlled study intended to evaluate the analgesic efficacy and tolerance of oxycodone-acetaminophen compared to celecoxib alone in post-total knee arthroplasty (TKA) knee osteoarthritis patients. METHODS: One hundred and six knee osteoarthritis patients were randomized into oxycodone-acetaminophen group (N = 54) and celecoxib group (N = 52) at a 1:1 ratio. Each patient orally received oxycodone-acetaminophen (5 mg/325 mg, four times per day) or celecoxib (200 mg, twice per day) from 2 h to day (D) 3 after TKA; meanwhile, each patient received 2-day patient-controlled analgesia (PCA). The primary outcome was pain visual analog scale (VAS) score at rest; other assessments were the secondary outcomes. RESULTS: Pain VAS scores at rest at D1, D2, D3, and pain VAS scores at flexion at D0.5, D1, D2, D3 were lower in oxycodone-acetaminophen group compared to celecoxib group (all P < 0.050). Besides, extra (P < 0.001) and total (P < 0.001) PCA consumption were declined in oxycodone-acetaminophen group compared with celecoxib group. Furthermore, patients' satisfaction score at D3 (P = 0.012) and D7 (P = 0.043) was higher in oxycodone-acetaminophen group versus celecoxib group. Hospital for special surgery knee score (HSS) at preoperation, M1, and M3 did not differ between the two groups (all P > 0.050). The incidences of all adverse events were not varied between oxycodone-acetaminophen and celecoxib groups (all P > 0.050). CONCLUSION: Oxycodone-acetaminophen exerts superior analgesic efficacy, patients' satisfaction, and similar tolerance compared to celecoxib in post-TKA knee osteoarthritis patients.

Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses of Cucurbita ficifolia Bouché (Cucurbitaceae) response to Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cucumerium.

BACKGROUND: Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum (FOC) is the causal agent of cucumber Fusarium wilt, which can cause extensive damages and productivity losses. Cucurbita ficifolia Bouché (Cucurbitaceae) is usually used as rootstock for cucumber because of its excellent resistance to Fusarium wilt. Our previous study found that C.ficifolia has high FOC resistance, the underlying mechanism of which is unclear. RESULTS: Transcriptome and proteome profiling was performed on the basis of RNA-Seq and isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation technology to explore the molecular mechanisms of the response of Cucurbita ficifolia Bouché to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerium infection. Comparative analyses revealed that 1850 genes and 356 protein species were differentially regulated at 2d and 4d after FOC inoculation. However, correlation analysis revealed that only 11 and 39 genes were differentially regulated at both the transcriptome and proteome levels after FOC inoculation at 2d and 4d, respectively. After FOC inoculation, plant hormones signal transduction, transcription factors were stimulated, whereas wax biosynthesis and photosynthesis were suppressed. Increased synthesis of oxidative-redox proteins is involved in resistance to FOC. CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first to reveal the response of C. ficifolia leaf to FOC infection at the transcriptome and proteome levels, and to show that FOC infection activates plant hormone signaling and transcription factors while suppressing wax biosynthesis and photosynthesis. The accumulation of oxidative-redox proteins also plays an important role in the resistance of C. ficifolia to FOC. Results provide new information regarding the processes of C. ficifolia leaf resistance to FOC and will contribute to the breeding of cucumber rootstock with FOC resistance.

Gene silencing, knockout and over-expression of a transcription factor ABORTED MICROSPORES (SlAMS) strongly affects pollen viability in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum).

BACKGROUND: The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is an economically valuable crop grown worldwide. Because the use of sterile males reduces the cost of F1 seed production, the innovation of male sterility is of great significance for tomato breeding. The ABORTED MICROSPORES gene (AMS), which encodes for a basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor, has been previously indicated as an essential gene for tapetum development in Arabidopsis and rice. To determine the function of the SlAMS gene (AMS gene from S. lycopersicum) and verify whether it is a potential candidate gene for generating the male sterility in tomato, we used virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS), CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing and over-expression technology to transform tomato via Agrobacterium infection. RESULTS: Here, the full-length SlAMS gene with 1806 bp from S. lycopersicum (Accession No. MK591950.1) was cloned from pollen cDNA. The results of pollen grains staining showed that, the non-viable pollen proportions of SlAMS-silenced (75%), -knockouted (89%) and -overexpressed plants (60%) were significantly higher than the wild type plants (less than 10%; P < 0.01). In three cases, the morphology of non-viable pollen grains appeared tetragonal, circular, atrophic, shriveled, or otherwise abnormally shaped, while those of wild type appeared oval and plump. Furthermore, the qRT-PCR analysis indicated that SlAMS in anthers of SlAMS-silenced and -knockouted plants had remarkably lower expression than in that of wild type (P < 0.01), and yet it had higher expression in SlAMS-overexpressed plants (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: In this paper, Our research suggested alternative approaches to generating male sterility in tomato, among which CRISPR/Cas9-mediated editing of SlAMS implied the best performance. We also demonstrated that the downregulation and upregulation of SlAMS both affected the pollen formation and notably led to reduction of pollen viability, suggesting SlAMS might be essential for regulating pollen development in tomato. These findings may facilitate studies on clarifying the SlAMS-associated molecular regulatory mechanism of pollen development in tomato.

Enhancing antibacterial property of porous titanium surfaces with silver nanoparticles coatings via electron-beam evaporation.

Antibacterial activity is one of the most vital characteristics for Titanium (Ti) dental implants. Coating antibacterial material onto Ti surfaces is an effective approach to enhance their intrinsic antibacterial ability. However, a cost-effective but efficient coating strategy for realizing this objective still remains challenging. In this study, we proposed a novel implant surface modification strategy for coating silver nanoparticles onto the porous Ti surface via a facile electron beam evaporation (EBE) approach. Porous Ti surfaces were firstly prepared by sand-blasting large grit acid-etching (SLA) process. Then, the silver nanoparticles coating thickness on the porous Ti surface was adjusted and optimized by altering the duration of EBE process. Consequently, composite porous Ti surfaces with different silver thicknesses were synthesized. Polished Ti (PT) surface without SLA or EBE process was also prepared as the controlled blank group. The surface characterizations were analyzed by SEM, AFM, and XPS. After that, the antibacterial properties of all groups were tested with bacteria counting method, bacterial viability test, live/dead bacterial staining, and SEM examination. Results show that silver nanoparticles were uniformly distributed on the porous Ti surfaces after the SLA and EBE processes. After being incorporated with silver nanoparticles, the composite surfaces successfully inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The antibacterial ratio (AR) values of SLA-Ag groups increased with the increasing silver thickness and are significantly higher than those of PT and SLA groups. Therefore, by the SLA and EBE processes, the composite porous Ti surfaces modified with silver nanoparticles coatings demonstrate superior antibacterial property compared with pure Ti surfaces, which is highly promising for enhancing the antibacterial functions of dental implants. Graphical abstract.

Actional Mechanisms of Active Ingredients in Functional Food Adlay for Human Health.

Medicinal and food homologous adlay (Coix lachryma-jobi L. var. ma-yuen Stapf) plays an important role in natural products promoting human health. We demonstrated the systematic actional mechanism of functional ingredients in adlay to promote human health, based on the PubMed, CNKI, Google, and ISI Web of Science databases from 1988 to 2022. Adlay and its extracts are rich in 30 ingredients with more than 20 health effects based on human and animal or cell cultures: they are anti-cancer, anti-inflammation, anti-obesity, liver protective, anti-virus, gastroprotective, cardiovascular protective, anti-hypertension, heart disease preventive, melanogenesis inhibiting, anti-allergy, endocrine regulating, anti-diabetes, anti-cachexia, osteoporosis preventive, analgesic, neuroprotecting, suitable for the treatment of gout arthritis, life extending, anti-fungi, and detoxifying effects. Function components with anti-oxidants are rich in adlay. These results support the notion that adlay seeds may be one of the best functional foods and further reveal the action mechanism of six major functional ingredients (oils, polysaccharides, phenols, phytosterols, coixol, and resistant starch) for combating diseases. This review paper not only reveals the action mechanisms of adding adlay to the diet to overcome 17 human diseases, but also provides a scientific basis for the development of functional foods and drugs for the treatment of human diseases.

Hypoxia-induced HIF1α dependent COX2 promotes ovarian cancer progress.

Hypoxia can promote the progression and metastasis of ovarian cancer, while the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. Hypoxia culture or CoCl2 induced-oxygen deprivation condition could promote SKOV3 cells to express cyclooxygenase-2 (COX2). Luciferase assay indicates that hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF1α) could bind directly with the promoter region of COX2 to promote the transcription. COX2 over-expressed SKOV3 cells show up-regulated stemness-related markers expression, proinflammatory gene expression, and increased tumor sphere formation. The inflammatory molecules (interleukin-6, C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 12, interleukin-1B, interleukin-10, and C-C motif chemokine ligand 2) and COX2 expression show positive correlations in the Cancer Genome Atlas data. COX2 over-expression could promote SKOV3 cell proliferation in the subcutaneous tumor model and metastasis in the transfer model. In conclusion, hypoxia-induced HIF-1α mediated COX2 expression could promote the proliferation, inflammation, and metastasis of ovarian cancer.

Association between Helicobacter pylori infection and oral lichen planus: A meta-analysis.

Background: Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a T cell-mediated autoimmune disease that affects the oral mucosa. Although Helicobacter pylori has been documented in subgingival and supragingival plaques and saliva, little is currently known about the relationship between Helicobacter pylori and OLP, warranting further research. Methods: PubMed, Embase, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Web of Science databases were thoroughly searched for relevant articles published from inception until May 23, 2023. Results: Due to high heterogeneity among the included studies (Tau2 = 2.16; χ 2  = 40.33, df = 6; I 2  = 85 %), we employed a random-effects model (REM). The forest plot revealed a significant correlation between H. pylori infection and OLP, with an odds ratio (OR) of 4.69 (95 % CI: 1.36 to 16.19; P < 0.01). Sensitivity analysis showed that the pooled ORs ranged from 3.69 (95 % CI: 1.01 to 13.44; P = 0.05) to 6.77 (95 % CI: 2.65-17.30; P < 0.001), and no single study significantly influenced the results when removed individually. Additionally, subgroup analysis was conducted to investigate the relationship between H. pylori infection and OLP and explore the sources of heterogeneity. Finally, Begg's test (P = 0.24) and Egger's test (P = 0.35) were performed on the included studies, and the results indicated no significant publication bias. Conclusion: Our meta-analysis suggests a close association between H. pylori infection and OLP. Nevertheless, further research is warranted to validate these results in the future.

Plasmon AgNPs/MoS2/ZnO nanorods array ternary heterojunctions enabling high-efficiency solar-light energy utilization for photocatalysis and recyclable SERS detection.

BACKGROUND: Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has gained widespread use in molecule-level detection benefiting from its high sensitivity, nondestructive data acquisition, and capacity for providing molecular fingerprint information. However, the strong adhesion of target molecules to the substrate (known as the "memory effect") inherently hinders the reusability of SERS substrates. Research has shown that self-cleaning SERS substrates based on versatile semiconductor materials with SERS enhancement capabilities and solar photocatalytic properties offer an effective platform for the sensitive detection and degradation of harmful molecules. RESULTS: In this research, a resuable SERS-active substrate was facilely fabricated by anchoring silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to the edges of MoS2 nanosheet decorated on ZnO nanorod arrays (NRAs). This innovative design exhibited a remarkable SERS enhancement factor (EF) of 4.6 × 107 and demonstrated significant solar photocatalytic efficiency. Such superior characteristics of ternary plasma heterojunction were ascribable to the synergistic effect of the "Schottky barrier" and "hot spots" between MoS2 and AgNPs, the inherent chemical enhancement proficiency of the MoS2/ZnO NRAs heterojunction, as well as the ultrafast electron transfer within the ternary heterojunction. SIGNIFICANCE: The developed ternary heterojunction substrate enabled highly sensitive SERS detection of trace amounts of organic molecules. Moreover, this SERS substrate exhibited self-cleaning and recyclability via solar-light-driven photocatalysis. This bifunctional recyclable SERS substrate proved capable of meeting various requirements for routine monitoring of environmental organic pollutants and provided a robust avenue for advancing energy utilization materials that serve as high-performance SERS sensors and catalysts.