Identification and Application of CLE Peptides for Drought Resistance in Solanaceae Crops.

The CLE (CLAVATA3/Embryo Surrounding Region-related) family, a group of peptides with hormone-like features, plays a pivotal role in plant growth, development, and adaptation to stress. Through homology-based blast analysis of 32 Arabidopsis thaliana CLE peptide sequences, we have identified 5, 14, and 10 CLE family members in Nicotiana tabacum, Capsicum annuum, and Solanum melongena, respectively. Chemical synthesis and functional assays of the peptides led to the discovery that NtCLE3 substantially enhances the drought resistance of these three Solanaceae crops. Our transcriptome, RT-qPCR, and antioxidant enzyme activity data showed that NtCLE3 increased antioxidant capacity and ABA synthesis in tobacco. Moreover, the recombinant protein RPNtCLE3, composed of 6*NtCLE3, preserved the capacity to foster drought resilience and proved to be a promising drought resistance regulator, which presents a more favorable alternative for field applications compared to ABA which degrades rapidly under sunlight exposure. This research unveils the prospective utility of NtCLE3 in enhancing drought tolerance in Solanaceae crops and provides new ideas for the development of novel bioregulators aimed at mitigating drought stress.

Structure and functional divergence of PIP peptide family revealed by functional studies on PIP1 and PIP2 in Arabidopsis thaliana.

PAMP-induced secreted peptide (PIP), one of the small post-translationally modified peptides (PTMPs), plays a crucial role in plant development and stress tolerance. However, little is known about functional divergence among this peptide family. Here, we studied the evolution of the PIP family in 23 plant species (10 monocotyledons and 13 dicotyledons from 7 families) and their functional divergence in Arabidopsis. A total of 128 putative PIP precursors were identified and classified into two subfamilies through phylogenetic analysis. Functional studies on AtPIP1 which represents Clade I family and AtPIP2 which represents Clade II family have shown that AtPIP2 displayed stronger immunity induction activity but weaker root growth inhibition than AtPIP1 in Arabidopsis. Transcriptome analysis of Arabidopsis seedlings treated with AtPIP1 and AtPIP2 showed that differential genes for both polypeptides were significantly enriched in similar plant defense pathways. However, Co-expression and Protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis showed that the functions of AtprePIP2 co-expressed genes were more enriched in plant defense pathways than AtprePIP1. Molecular docking results show that AtPIP1 binds to RLK7 receptor with a more stable free energy and less binding area than AtPIP2, while hydrogen bond transfer occurs at the SGP motif position. The above results suggest that the PIP family have undergone functional divergence during evolution. Collectively, this work illustrates the relationship between PIP structure and function using Arabidopsis PIP as an example, and provides new insights into the current understanding between growth inhibition and immune responses which may be correlated but not fully coupled.

Conservation and divergence of flg22, pep1 and nlp20 in activation of immune response and inhibition of root development.

Many pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) and their corresponding ligands have been identified. However, it is largely unknown how similar and different these ligands are in inducing plant innate immunity and affecting plant development. In this study, we examined three well characterized ligands in Arabidopsis thaliana, namely flagellin 22 (flg22), plant elicitor peptide 1 (pep1) and a conserved 20-amino-acid fragment found in most necrosis and ethylene-inducing peptide 1-like proteins (nlp20). Our quantitative analyses detected the differences in amplitude in the early immune responses of these ligands, with nlp20-induced responses typically being slower than those mediated by flg22 and pep1. RNA sequencing showed the shared differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was mostly enriched in defense response, whereas nlp20-regulated genes represent only a fraction of those genes differentially regulated by flg22 and pep1. The three elicitors all inhibited primary root growth, especially pep1, which inhibited both auxin transport and signaling pathway. In addition, pep1 significantly inhibited the cell division and genes involved in cell cycle. Compared with flg22 and nlp20, pep1 induced much stronger expression of its receptor in roots, suggesting a potential positive feedback regulation in the activation of immune response. Despite PRRs and their co-receptor BAK1 were necessary for both PAMP induced immune response and root growth inhibition, bik1 mutant only showed impaired defense response but relatively normal root growth inhibition, suggesting BIK1 acts differently in these two biological processes.

The Mediating Role of Hope in the Relationship Between Perceived Stress and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Among Chinese Patients with Oral Cancer: A Cross-Sectional Study.

PURPOSE: Cancer diagnosis and treatment are long-term traumatic stressors. Depression and anxiety are known to be prevalent in patients with cancer, but post-traumatic disorder (PTSD) has been overlooked frequently in this population. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of PTSD and examined the mediating role of hope in the relationship between perceived stress and PTSD symptoms in Chinese patients with oral cancer. METHODS: A total of 230 oral cancer patients were recruited to complete a questionnaire including the Posttraumatic Stress Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C), the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10) and the Herth Hope Index (HHI). Analysis of variances (ANOVA)/t-test, Person's r and hierarchical linear regression analysis methods were conducted to assess the associations among perceived stress, hope and PTSD symptoms. Asymptotic and resampling strategies were used to explore the mediating role of hope. RESULTS: The prevalence of PTSD symptoms was 6.05% in Chinese patients with oral cancer. Perceived stress was positively related to PTSD symptoms, explaining 39.9% of the variance. In addition, hope was negatively related to PTSD symptoms, explaining 5.9% of the variance. Besides, the proportion of mediation of hope was 30.06%. CONCLUSION: Perceived stress was positively associated with PTSD symptoms, and hope was negatively associated with PTSD symptoms. Furthermore, hope played partial mediating role in the relationship between perceived stress and PTSD symptoms. Thus, more attention should be paid to patients' PTSD status, and take measures is to relieve stress and increase hope.

Vps15 is critical to mediate autophagy in AngII treated HUVECs probably by PDK1/PKC signaling pathway.

AIMS: Vps15 is an important regulator on the activity of class III PI3K in autophagy induction. AngII plays a positive role of autophagy in the early protection of endothelial cells. In this study, the expression of Vps15 was knocked down using the specific shRNA to investigate the effects of Vps15 on cell autophagy, senescence and apoptosis in HUVECs stimulated by AngII. The associated cell signaling pathway was also explored. MATERIALS AND METHODS: MDC staining was applied to show autophagic bodies. Cell senescence was detected using ß-galactosidase staining. Cell apoptosis was examined by flow cytometry using Annexin V-FITC/PI staining. And western blot was used to evaluate the ratio of LC3-II/I and the activation of associated cell signaling pathway. KEY FINDINGS: Cell autophagy induced by AngII was inhibited in HUVECs transfected with Vps15-shRNA, while cell senescence and apoptosis were enhanced. Rescue experiment revealed that cell autophagy was activated after Vps15 reexpression, while cell senescence and apoptosis were inhibited. Moreover, the phosphorylations of PDK1 and PKC substrates were increased after AngII treatment, which were decreased by Vps15 knockdown. Pretreatment of cells with the inhibitor for PDK1 or PKC attenuated cell autophagy after AngII stimulation, yet promoted cell senescence and apoptosis. The phosphorylations of both PDK1 and PKC were inhibited in cells pretreated with PDK1 inhibitor. Only the activation of PKC was inhibited when the inhibitor for pan-PKC was used. SIGNIFICANCE: These results suggested that Vps15 was critical to the protective autophagy in HUVECs induced by AngII, and PDK1/PKC signaling pathway was probably involved.

Adaptation of the Communication Skills Attitude Scale (CSAS) to Surgical Residents in China.

BACKGROUND: In modern China, conflicts between doctors and patients with their families have become increasingly serious. Lack of communication skills is one of the major challenges faced by many residents. Surgical residents' attitudes toward communication are of great significance to communication skills learning. The Communication Skills Attitude Scale (CSAS) is a widely validated and popularly used tool for assessing the attitudes of medical students toward communication skills. The aim of this study was to develop a Chinese version of the CSAS in order to explore attitudes toward communication skills among Chinese surgical residents and to test the psychometric properties of the modified instrument. METHODS: 1490 surgical residents among PGY1 to PGY3 were recruited in September 2017 to evaluate attitudes toward communication skills using the Chinese version of the CSAS in China. The reliability of the questionnaire and of each factor was assessed by Cronbach's α coefficients. Principal component analysis was used to evaluate construct validity. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 22.0. RESULTS: Of 1490 surgical residents of PGY1 to PGY3, 1420 (95.03%) residents completed the questionnaires satisfactorily. An overall Cronbach's α coefficient of the CSAS was 0.919. The results of principal component analysis showed that the 2-factor structure, which explained 49.06% of the variance, produced an acceptable fit. Stratified analysis by demographic variables suggested that there may be differences based on gender and study year of residency in attitudes toward learning communication skills. CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest that the Chinese version of CSAS developed to assess surgery residents are feasible and provide valid and reliable evidence. Further research is necessary to explore and understand attitudes toward communication skills of surgical residents in China.

Anti­allergic action of bacillus Calmette­Guerin extract in experimental mast cell­mediated anaphylactic models.

Allergy is an acquired hypersensitivity reaction of the immune system mediated by IgE­induced mast cell degranulation. In China, bacillus Calmette­Guerin extract (BCGE) has been shown to be clinically effective for regulating immunity, which enhances the resistance of the body to anaphylactic disease, infectious diseases and cancer. However, the mechanisms remain to be fully elucidated. The present study investigated the potential anti­allergic effects of BCGE in animal models of mast cell­dependent anaphylaxis and mechanisms of BCGE in mast cells. Anti­allergic actions of BCGE were evaluated in passive cutaneous anaphylaxis, dextran T40­induced scratching behavior mouse models, and in ovalbumin (OVA)­induced contraction of intestinal tube isolated from OVA­sensitized guinea pigs. Direct mast cell­stabilizing effects of BCGE were examined in mast cells from the abdominal cavity of OVA­sensitized rats. Anti­allergic signaling mechanisms of BCGE in mast cells were investigated by detection of cyclic adenosine monophosphate levels and protein kinase A expression in mast cells. It was observed that BCGE prevented OVA­induced cutaneous vascular hyperpermeability, skin itching, elevation in plasma histamine levels and abdominal cavity fluid mast cell degranulation in animal models, in a dose­dependent manner. BCGE also suppressed OVA­mediated guinea pig intestinal tube contraction in vitro. In addition, BCGE was found to increase the levels of interferon­Î³, and reduce the levels of interleukin­4 and OVA­sIg E levels in OVA­sensitized rats. BCGE also increased levels of cyclic adenosine monophosphate and the expression of protein kinase A in mast cells separated from the abdominal cavity fluid of OVA­sensitized rats. In conclusion, the results suggested that BCGE possesses anti­allergic activity by inhibiting IgE­induced mast cell degranulation, providing a foundation for the development of BCGE for the treatment of mast cell­mediated allergic disorders.

Protection of endothelial cells against Ang II-induced impairment: Involvement of both PPARα and PPARγ via PI3K/Akt pathway.

The aim of our study is to explore the involvement of PPARα and PPARγ in Ang II-induced endothelial injury. We found that Ang II significantly elevated the oxidative stress in HUVECs, causing apoptosis and cellular impairment in a time-dependent pattern. Activation of either PPARα by docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) or PPARγ by rosiglitazone protected the endothelial cells. Interestingly, a more significant effect was observed when DHA and rosiglitazone were administrated together. Moreover, we found that this protection was mediated through the PI3K/Akt pathway. Our study may help to understand the mechanism of endothelial dysfunction, contributing to the treatment of hypertension and other endothelial-related diseases.

A population-based study on health-related quality of life among urban community residents in Shenyang, Northeast of China.

BACKGROUND: Due to the rising standard of living environment and advances in public health and medical care in China, it has been a tendency in recent years that health-related quality of life (HRQoL) has been increasingly acknowledged in community health management. However, large-scale population-based study on evaluating HQRoL in northeast of China was not conducted. This article aims to investigate the HRQoL in community residents in Northeast China and explore the associated factors. METHODS: Stratified multiple-stage sampling method was used in the cross-sectional survey to investigate HRQoL of community residents in northeast of China. Univariate analysis and multiple linear regressions were used to analyze the factors associated to HRQoL of the community residents. RESULTS: The results were confirmed that HRQoL in general population was well performed for the first time in northeast of China in a large scale population. Community residents had better mental health than physical health. The factors influencing HRQoL included gender, age, educational level, marital status, ethnic group, chronic disease status, having breakfast frequency weekly and sleep quality. However, drinking and smoking habits did not affect residents' HRQoL. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, the result of the large-scale survey was satisfactory in northeast of China, providing HRQoL status of community residents. Policies on specific health management in community public health would emphasize on lifestyle behaviors especially eating habits in order to improving HRQoL.

CD44 family proteins in gastric cancer: a meta-analysis and narrative review.

With a meta-analysis and narrative review, we evaluated the clinical and prognostic role of all CD44 family proteins in gastric cancer (GC). Literatures published up to August 2014 were searched on PubMed. Among the 37 eligible studies (6606 patients), 34 were included in meta-analysis, and 10 were subjected to narrative review. With meta-analysis, standard CD44 (CD44s) was demonstrated to predict reduced overall survival (OS) (HR = 1.93, 95% CI: 1.58-2.34, PHR = 0.0222) and disease free survival (HR = 3.13, 95% CI: 1.02-9.68, PHR = 0.0469), advanced N-stage (RR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.04-1.21, PRR = 0.0019), and distant metastasis (RR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.46-3.14, PRR < 0.0001) of GC. CD44 variant 6 (CD44v6) in GC might influence OS (5 studies; HR = 1.27, 95% CI: 0.75-2.14, PHR = 0.3783; 4 studies; HR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.09-2.14, PHR = 0.0139), while significantly associated with N-stage (RR = 1.23, 95% CI: 1.03-1.48, PRR = 0.0240), M-stage (RR = 2.54, 95% CI: 1.08-6.00, PRR = 0.0333), TNM-stage (RR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.18-2.50, PRR = 0.0045), Lauren type (RR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.50-0.91, PRR = 0.0106), lymphatic invasion (RR = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.04-1.23, PRR = 0.0057), and liver metastasis (RR = 3.20, 95% CI: 1.94-5.27, PRR < 0.0001) of the disease. Moreover, a narrative review was performed for CD44 isoforms, such as v3, v5, v7, v8-10, and v9, in GC. In conclusion, CD44s and CD44v6 as evaluated by immunohistochemistry, respectively, predicts the prognosis and disease severity of GC.

Facts and fiction of the relationship between preexisting tuberculosis and lung cancer risk: a systematic review.

There has been conflicting evidence concerning the possible association between tuberculosis (TB) and subsequent risk of lung cancer. To investigate whether currently published epidemiological studies can clarify this association, we performed a systematic review of 37 case-control and 4 cohort studies (published between January 1966 and January 2009) and a meta-analysis of risk estimates, with particular attention to the role of smoking, passive smoking and the timing of diagnosis of TB on this relationship. Data for the review show a significantly increased lung cancer risk associated with preexisting TB. Importantly, the association was not due to confounding by the effects of tobacco use (RR=1.8, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.4-2.2, among never smoking individuals), lifetime environmental tobacco smoke exposure (RR=2.9, 95%CI=1.6-5.3, after controlling) or the timing of diagnosis of TB (the increased lung cancer risk remained 2-fold elevated for more than 20 years after TB diagnosis). Interestingly, the association was significant with adenocarcinoma (RR=1.6, 95%CI=1.2-2.1), but no significant associations with squamous and small cell type of lung cancer were observed. Although no causal mechanism has been demonstrated for such an association, present study supports a direct relation between TB and lung cancer, especially adenocarcinomas.

[To investigate the relation of sudden deafness with hearing loss level and auditory threshold].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relation of sudden deafness with hearing loss level and auditory threshold. METHOD: A retrospective analysis was performed in 92 cases(97 years) of sudden deafness patients. RESULT: In this group,the best hearing loss prognosis was the ascend type and the back type the total effective rate was both 100.0%. The second was the slow descend type. The total effective rate of this type was 70.0% (7/10). the total effective rate of full deaf is 66.7% (14/21), the sudden descend type is poor, the effective rate was 50% (4/8). although the full deaf groups total effective rate was high than sudden descend type, without one ear completely recovering, and only one ear from sudden descend type was completely cured. After treatment, there were 6 ears of fall deaf in full deaf group. There was one case rised 65 dBHL and one case rised 50 dBHL from the 21 cases full deaf sufferer. In this deaf level group, the light level and the middle level was one ear respectively. Although the total effective rate of this group was the highest, all the cases were not completely recovered. After treatment, the hearing rise 17 dBHL and 19 dBHL respectively. After chi2 text (chi2 = 1.459, P > 0.05), the total effective rate of the more heavier, heavy, and the heaviest to full deaf was no significant difference but after chi2 text (chi2 = 10.09, P < 0.01), the full recover rate was significant difference. The more heavier level group's full recover rate was the highest 38.5% (10/26).the second was heavy level group ,the full recover rate is 33.3% (12/36), the worst level to full deaf group was the lowest: 6.0% (2/33). CONCLUSION: It was considered that the deafness level was no obvious relation to the total effective rate, but there was significant difference in fully recover rate. The different auditory threshold figure of the sudden deafness was closely related to the hearings prognosis.