Key Contributions of the Overexpressed Plutella xylostella Sigma Glutathione S-Transferase 1 Gene (PxGSTs1) in the Resistance Evolution to Multiple Insecticides.

The overexpression of insect detoxification enzymes is a typical adaptive evolutionary strategy for insects to cope with insecticide pressure. In this study, we identified a glutathione S-transferase (GST) gene, PxGSTs1, that exhibited pronounced expression in the field-resistant population of Plutella xylostella. By using RNAi (RNA interference), the transgenic fly models, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) methods, we confirmed that the augmented expression of PxGSTs1 mediates the resistance of P. xylostella to various types of insecticides, including chlorantraniliprole, novaluron, λ-cyhalothrin, and abamectin. PxGSTs1 was found to bolster insecticide resistance in two ways: direct detoxification and enhancing antioxidative defenses. In addition, our findings demonstrated that pxy-miR-8528a exerts a pivotal influence on forming insecticide resistance in P. xylostella by downregulating PxGSTs1 expression. In summary, we elucidated the multifaceted molecular and biochemical underpinnings of PxGSTs1-driven insecticide resistance in P. xylostella. Our results provide a new perspective for understanding the insecticide resistance mechanism of P. xylostella.

Probability of outbreaks and cross-border dissemination of the emerging pathogen: a genomic survey of Elizabethkingia meningoseptica.

IMPORTANCE: Elizabethkingia meningoseptica is an emerging infectious agent associated with life-threatening infections in immunocompromised individuals. However, there are limited data available on the genomic features of E. meningoseptica. This study aims to characterize the geographical distribution, phylogenetic evolution, pathogenesis, and transmission of this bacterium. A systematic analysis of the E. meningoseptica genome revealed that a common ancestor of this bacterium existed 90 years ago. The evolutionary history showed no significant relationship with the sample source, origin, or region, despite the presence of genetic diversity. Whole genome sequencing data also demonstrated that E. meningoseptica bacteria possess inherent resistance and pathogenicity, enabling them to spread within the same hospital and even across borders. This study highlights the potential for E. meningoseptica to cause severe nosocomial outbreaks and horizontal transmission between countries worldwide. The available evidence is crucial for the development of evidence-based public health policies to prevent global outbreaks caused by emerging pathogens.

The chemosensory protein 1 contributes to indoxacarb resistance in Plutella xylostella (L.).

BACKGROUND: Insecticide resistance continuously poses a threat to agricultural production. Chemosensory protein-mediated resistance is a new mechanism of insecticide resistance discovered in recent years. In-depth research on resistance mediated by chemosensory proteins (CSPs) provides new insight into aid insecticide resistance management. RESULTS: Chemosensory protein 1 in Plutella xylostella (PxCSP1) was overexpressed in the two indoxacarb-resistant field populations and PxCSP1 has a high affinity with indoxacarb. PxCSP1 was upregulated when exposed to indoxacarb and the knockdown of this gene elevated sensitivity to indoxacarb, which demonstrate that PxCSP1 is involved in the indoxacarb resistance. Considering that CSPs may confer resistance in insects via binding or sequestering, we explored the binding mechanism of indoxacarb in PxCSP1-mediated resistance. Using molecular dynamics simulations and site-directed mutation, we found that indoxacarb forms a solid complex with PxCSP1 mainly through van der Waals interactions and electrostatic interactions. Between these, the electrostatic interaction provided by the Lys100 side chain in PxCSP1, and especially the hydrogen bonding between the NZ atom and the O of the carbamoyl carbonyl group of indoxacarb, are the key factors for the high affinity of PxCSP1 to indoxacarb. CONCLUSIONS: The overexpression of PxCPS1 and its high affinity to indoxacarb is partially responsible for indoxacarb resistance in P. xylostella. Modification of indoxacarb's carbamoyl group has the potential to alleviate indoxacarb resistance in P. xylostella. These findings will contribute to solving chemosensory protein-mediated indoxacarb resistance and provide a better understanding of the insecticide resistance mechanism. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Expression changes of Tim-3 as one of supplementary indicators for monitoring prognosis of liver pathological changes in chronic HBV infection.

PURPOSE: This study was designed to analyze the liver tissue changes among the CHB patients who received treatment for at least 6 months and follow-up for at least 1 year, together with the correlation between the different disease condition and serum markers. METHODS: One-hundred and eighty-five CHB patients underwent antiviral therapy for at least 6 months were enrolled. In the 12-month follow-up, ultrasonography-guided biopsy was performed. The patients were grouped based on the serum markers and pathological changes in liver tissues. Then we determined the serum markers, virological tests and Tim-3 expression among these groups. RESULTS: Antiviral therapy significantly reduced liver inflammation indicators and serum Tim-3 level. However, the fibrosis process of liver tissue was not changed, and there are still disputes on the serum marker and hepatic lesion outcomes. Under normal liver function or negative hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) of CHB patients, there might be consensus between Tim-3 change and liver pathological outcome. According to the liver tissue inflammation and fibrosis conditions, Tim-3 was positively correlated with liver function indices. Besides, it was also related to fibrosis stage and inflammation grade. CONCLUSION: There were inconsistent changes between serum markers and liver tissue conditions after anti-viral therapy. Tim-3 expression was more suitable to indicate the changes of liver inflammatory and fibrosis response to some extent than ALT and AST. It may serve as a certain indicator to predict the CHB prognosis, which could be used as one of the monitoring indicators in liver pathological changes of chronic HBV infection, especially in monitoring liver tissue inflammation.

Genomic Analysis of Stropharia rugosoannulata Reveals Its Nutritional Strategy and Application Potential in Bioremediation.

Stropharia rugosoannulata is not only a popular edible mushroom, but also has excellent potential in bioremediation. In this study, we present a high-quality genome of a monokaryotic strain of the S. rugosoannulata commercial cultivar in China. The assembly yielded an N50 length of 2.96 Mb and a total size of approximately 48.33 Mb, encoding 11,750 proteins. The number of heme peroxidase-encoding genes in the genome of S. rugosoannulata was twice the average of all of the tested Agaricales. The genes encoding lignin and xenobiotic degradation enzymes accounted for more than half of the genes encoding plant cell wall degradation enzymes. The expansion of genes encoding lignin and xenobiotic degradation enzymes, and cytochrome P450 involved in the xenobiotic metabolism, were responsible for its strong bioremediation and lignin degradation abilities. S. rugosoannulata was classified as a litter-decomposing (LD) fungus, based on the analysis of the cell wall degrading enzymes. Substrate selection for fruiting body cultivation should consider both the nutritional strategy of LD and a strong lignin degradation ability. Consistent with safe usage as an edible mushroom, the S. rugosoannulata genome does not contain genes for known psilocybin biosynthesis. Genome analysis will be helpful for understanding its nutritional strategy to guide fruiting body cultivation and for providing insight into its application in bioremediation.

Ultrastructure and development of acanthocytes, specialized cells in Stropharia rugosoannulata, revealed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and cryo-SEM.

Acanthocytes are special cells with a distinct spiky shape produced exclusively by the fungi of Stropharia and can be used to defend against nematodes. In the present study, the ultrastructure and development of acanthocytes were revealed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and cryo-SEM in S. rugosoannulata, a popular cultivated mushroom both in China and Europe. The acanthocytes were abundant on the surface of rhizomorph, casing soils, and vegetative mycelia of homokaryotic and heterokaryotic strains in S. rugosoannulata. The development of the acanthocyte was investigated with cryo-SEM, which has distinct advantage for observation of the ultrastructure of live, hydrated structures. Three distinct stages, including formation of lateral branch that was covered with patches, spiky structure formation, and maturation of acanthocytes, were identified and described. The irregular patches deposited on the surface of lateral branches and the holes in the spiky branches of the acanthocytes were reported for the first time. The environmental nitrogen level showed impact on acanthocyte production, but it seemed not to be the indispensable factor. Acid medium could delay the initiation of the acanthocyte formation but did not affect the overall morphology and structure, indicating that the central deposit of acanthocytes should be acid soluble. Acanthocytes of S. rugosoannulata have similar hydrophobicity to mycelia. The observation of ultrastructure and development process of acanthocytes provides insights into the ecological function and evolution of this special structure.

Two New Dolabrane Diterpenes from the Chinese Mangrove Ceriops tagal.

Two new dolabrane diterpenes, tagalenes J and K (1 and 2), together with eleven known analogues (3 - 13), were isolated from the ethanolic extract of the Chinese mangrove Ceriops tagal. The structures of these compounds were determined by extensive spectroscopic analysis, including 1D-, 2D-NMR and HR-ESI-MS, as well as the comparison with data in the literatures. Cytotoxicities of isolated compounds against MCF-7, SW480, HepG2, HeLa, PANC-1, and A2058 cancer cell lines were also evaluated. Compound 4 exhibited weak cytotoxic activity against SW480, HeLa, and PANC-1 cell lines with IC50 values of 27.7, 22.2, and 17.6 µm, respectively.

Two new phenylpropanoids from the Chinese mangrove Ceriops tagal.

Two new phenylpropanoids, tagalphenylpropanoidins A-B (1-2), together with a known analogue, 2,3,6-trimethoxy-5-(1-propenyl)phenol (3), were isolated from the ethanolic extract of the Chinese mangrove Ceriops tagal. The structures of these compounds were determined by extensive spectroscopic analysis, including 1D and 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS, as well as the comparison with data in the literature. Compound 3 was discovered from this plant for the first time. Cytotoxicities of the three compounds against MCF-7 and HL-60 cancer cell lines were also evaluated.

Profiling, clinicopathological correlation and functional validation of specific long non-coding RNAs for hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent and aggressive malignancies worldwide. Studies seeking to advance the overall understanding of lncRNA profiling in HCC remain rare. METHODS: The transcriptomic profiling of 12 HCC tissues and paired adjacent normal tissues was determined using high-throughput RNA sequencing. Fifty differentially expressed mRNAs (DEGs) and lncRNAs (DELs) were validated in 21 paired HCC tissues via quantitative real-time PCR. The correlation between the expression of DELs and various clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed using Student's t-test or linear regression. Co-expression networks between DEGs and DELs were constructed through Pearson correlation co-efficient and enrichment analysis. Validation of DELs' functions including proliferation and migration was performed via loss-of-function RNAi assays. RESULTS: In this study, we identified 439 DEGs and 214 DELs, respectively, in HCC. Furthermore, we revealed that multiple DELs, including NONHSAT003823, NONHSAT056213, NONHSAT015386 and especially NONHSAT122051, were remarkably correlated with tumor cell differentiation, portal vein tumor thrombosis, and serum or tissue alpha fetoprotein levels. In addition, the co-expression network analysis between DEGs and DELs showed that DELs were involved with metabolic, cell cycle, chemical carcinogenesis, and complement and coagulation cascade-related pathways. The silencing of the endogenous level of NONHSAT122051 or NONHSAT003826 could significantly attenuate the mobility of both SK-HEP-1 and SMMC-7721 HCC cells. CONCLUSION: These findings not only add knowledge to the understanding of genome-wide transcriptional evaluation of HCC but also provide promising targets for the future diagnosis and treatment of HCC.

Influence of H7N9 virus infection and associated treatment on human gut microbiota.

Between March and June, 2013, forty H7N9 patients were hospitalized in our hospital. Next-generation sequencing technologies have been used to sequence the fecal DNA samples of the patient, the within sample diversity analysis, enterotyping, functional gene and metagenomic species analysis have been carried on both the patients and healthy controls. The influence of associated treatment in H7N9 infected patients is dramatic and was firstly revealed in species level due to deep sequencing technology. We found that most of the MetaGenomic Species (MGS) enriched in the control samples were Roseburia inulinivorans DSM 16841, butyrate producing bacterium SS3/4 and most of MGS enriched in the H7N9 patients were Clostridium sp. 7 2 43FAA and Enterococcus faecium. It was concluded that H7N9 viral infection and antibiotic administration have a significant effect on the microbiota community with decreased diversity and overgrowth of the bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecium. Enterotype analysis showed that the communities were unstable. Treatment including antivirals, probiotics and antibiotics helps to improve the microbiota diversity and the abundance of beneficial bacteria in the gut.

Alterations of the human gut microbiome in liver cirrhosis.

Liver cirrhosis occurs as a consequence of many chronic liver diseases that are prevalent worldwide. Here we characterize the gut microbiome in liver cirrhosis by comparing 98 patients and 83 healthy control individuals. We build a reference gene set for the cohort containing 2.69 million genes, 36.1% of which are novel. Quantitative metagenomics reveals 75,245 genes that differ in abundance between the patients and healthy individuals (false discovery rate < 0.0001) and can be grouped into 66 clusters representing cognate bacterial species; 28 are enriched in patients and 38 in control individuals. Most (54%) of the patient-enriched, taxonomically assigned species are of buccal origin, suggesting an invasion of the gut from the mouth in liver cirrhosis. Biomarkers specific to liver cirrhosis at gene and function levels are revealed by a comparison with those for type 2 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease. On the basis of only 15 biomarkers, a highly accurate patient discrimination index is created and validated on an independent cohort. Thus microbiota-targeted biomarkers may be a powerful tool for diagnosis of different diseases.