Off-axis four-mirror telescope with a wide field of view and a long focal length using double integrated mirrors.

An off-axis four-mirror optical system has the advantages of a wide field of view (FOV) and a small telephoto ratio. However, it will bring difficulties in assembly and detection. Here we report an off-axis four-mirror free-form telescope with a long focal length and a wide field of view based on two integration mirrors. The initial structure of a coaxial four-mirror optical system is established based on the Seidel aberration theory. A Zernike Fringe free-form surface is introduced to correct aberrations. By gradually increasing the entrance pupil diameter and the FOV, we finally obtain an off-axis four-mirror telescope with a FOV of 0.4∘×20∘, an F-number of 11.5, a long focal length of 2000 mm, and a volume of 360×400×600m m 3. In addition, four mirrors remain coaxially aligned, remarkably facilitating detection and adjustment. The proposed off-axis four-mirror telescope, with double integration mirrors, holds great potential for application in aerospace remote sensing observations.

The Effect of Trait Anxiety on Bedtime Procrastination: the Mediating Role of Self-Control.

BACKGROUND: Bedtime procrastination (BP), a special type of health behavior procrastination, is considered to be a failure of self-control. Notably, self-control may mediate the effect of trait anxiety on general procrastination. However, there is no evidence demonstrating the role of self-control in the relationship between trait anxiety and BP. Moreover, the association between BP and trait anxiety has not yet been thoroughly studied. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore the direct relationship between them as well as the mediating role of self-control in this relationship. METHODS: This cross-sectional survey included 718 college students enrolled in Chinese universities between October 2018 and January 2020. The Chinese versions of the Bedtime Procrastination Scale, the Self-Control Scale, and the Trait Anxiety Inventory were used to evaluate BP, self-control, and trait anxiety, respectively. RESULTS: Multiple linear regression analysis revealed trait anxiety independently predicted BP while controlling for demographic characteristics. Correlation analyses showed that BP was positively correlated with trait anxiety, but negatively related to self-control. Structural equation modeling further revealed a mediating role of self-control in the relationship between trait anxiety and BP. CONCLUSIONS: Trait anxiety is a significant independent predictor of BP and may induce BP directly or indirectly through the effect of self-control. These findings provide a deeper understanding of the relationship between trait anxiety and BP and the underlying mechanism by exploring the mediating effect of self-control. As such, trait anxiety and self-control should be included in prevention and intervention strategies to address BP behavior in college students.

Tartary Buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) FtTT8 Inhibits Anthocyanin Biosynthesis and Promotes Proanthocyanidin Biosynthesis.

Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) is an important plant, utilized for both medicine and food. It has become a current research hotspot due to its rich content of flavonoids, which are beneficial for human health. Anthocyanins (ATs) and proanthocyanidins (PAs) are the two main kinds of flavonoid compounds in Tartary buckwheat, which participate in the pigmentation of some tissue as well as rendering resistance to many biotic and abiotic stresses. Additionally, Tartary buckwheat anthocyanins and PAs have many health benefits for humans and the plant itself. However, little is known about the regulation mechanism of the biosynthesis of anthocyanin and PA in Tartary buckwheat. In the present study, a bHLH transcription factor (TF) FtTT8 was characterized to be homologous with AtTT8 and phylogenetically close to bHLH proteins from other plant species. Subcellular location and yeast two-hybrid assays suggested that FtTT8 locates in the nucleus and plays a role as a transcription factor. Complementation analysis in Arabidopsis tt8 mutant showed that FtTT8 could not recover anthocyanin deficiency but could promote PAs accumulation. Overexpression of FtTT8 in red-flowering tobacco showed that FtTT8 inhibits anthocyanin biosynthesis and accelerates proanthocyanidin biosynthesis. QRT-PCR and yeast one-hybrid assay revealed that FtTT8 might bind to the promoter of NtUFGT and suppress its expression, while binding to the promoter of NtLAR and upregulating its expression in K326 tobacco. This displayed the bidirectional regulating function of FtTT8 that negatively regulates anthocyanin biosynthesis and positively regulates proanthocyanidin biosynthesis. The results provide new insights on TT8 in Tartary buckwheat, which is inconsistent with TT8 from other plant species, and FtTT8 might be a high-quality gene resource for Tartary buckwheat breeding.

Comparative proteomic analyses of Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) seeds at three stages of development.

Tartary buckwheat is among the valuable crops, utilized as both food and Chinese herbal medicine. To uncover the accumulation dynamics of the main nutrients and their regulatory mechanism of Tartary buckwheat seeds, microscopic observations and nutrient analysis were conducted which suggested that starch, proteins as well as flavonoid gradually accumulated among seed development. Comparative proteomic analysis of rice Tartary buckwheat at three different developmental stages was performed. A total of 78 protein spots showed differential expression with 74 of them being successfully identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF MS. Among them, granule bound starch synthase (GBSS1) might be the critical enzyme that determines starch biosynthesis, while 11 S seed storage protein and vicilin seemed to be the main globulin and affect seed storage protein accumulation in Tartary buckwheat seeds. Two enzymes, flavanone 3-hydroxylase (F3H) and anthocyanidin reductase (ANR), involved in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway were identified. Further analysis on the expression profiles of flavonoid biosynthetic genes revealed that F3H might be the key enzyme that promote flavonoid accumulation. This study provides insights into the mechanism of nutrition accumulation at the protein level in Tartary buckwheat seeds and may facilitate in the breeding and enhancement of Tartary buckwheat germplasm.

Integrating maxillary dentition and 3D facial photo using a modified CAD/CAM facebow.

BACKGROUND: Accurate integration of the dentitions with the face is essential in dental clinical practice. Here we introduce a noninvasive and efficient protocol to integrate the digitized maxillary dentition with the three-dimensional (3D) facial photo using a prefabricated modified computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacture (CAD/CAM) facebow. METHODS: To integrate the maxillary dentition with the 3D facial photo, the CAD/CAM facebow protocol was applied to 20 patients by taking a series of 3D facial photos in the clinic and integrating them in the laboratory. The integration accuracy of this protocol was compared with that of a valid 3D computed tomography (CT)-aided protocol concerning translational deviations of the landmarks representing maxillary incisors and maxillary first molars as well as the rotational deviation of the maxillary dentition. The intra- and inter-observer reproducibility was assessed, and the time of clinical operation and laboratory integration was recorded. RESULTS: This facebow-aided protocol generated 3D fused images with colored faces and high-resolution dentitions, and showed high reproducibility. Compared with the well-established CT-aided protocol, the translational deviations ranged from 0 to 1.196 mm, with mean values ranging from 0.134 to 0.444 mm, and a relatively high integration error was found in the vertical dimension (Z) with a mean ± standard deviation (SD) of 0.379 ± 0.282 mm. Meanwhile, the rotational deviations ranged from 0.020 to 0.930°, with mean values less than 1°, and the most evident deviation was seen in pitch rotation with a mean ± SD of 0.445 ± 0.262°. The workflow took 4.34 ± 0.19 min (mins) for clinical operation and 11.23 ± 0.29 min for laboratory integration. CONCLUSION: The present radiation-free protocol with the modified CAD/CAM facebow provided accurate and reproducible transfer of the digitized maxillary dentition to the 3D facial photo with high efficiency.

Mapping QTLs for 1000-grain weight and genes controlling hull type using SNP marker in Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum).

BACKGROUND: Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum), an important pseudocereal crop, has high economic value due to its nutritional and medicinal properties. However, dehulling of Tartary buckwheat is difficult owing to its thick and tough hull, which has greatly limited the development of the Tartary buckwheat processing industry. The construction of high-resolution genetic maps serves as a basis for identifying quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and qualitative trait genes for agronomic traits. In this study, a recombinant inbred lines (XJ-RILs) population derived from a cross between the easily dehulled Rice-Tartary type and Tartary buckwheat type was genotyped using restriction site-associated DNA (RAD) sequencing to construct a high-density SNP genetic map. Furthermore, QTLs for 1000-grain weight (TGW) and genes controlling hull type were mapped in multiple environments. RESULTS: In total, 4151 bin markers comprising 122,185 SNPs were used to construct the genetic linkage map. The map consisted of 8 linkage groups and covered 1444.15 cM, with an average distance of 0.35 cM between adjacent bin markers. Nine QTLs for TGW were detected and distributed on four loci on chromosome 1 and 4. A major locus detected in all three trials was mapped in 38.2-39.8 cM region on chromosome 1, with an LOD score of 18.1-37.0, and explained for 23.6-47.5% of the phenotypic variation. The genes controlling hull type were mapped to chromosome 1 between marker Block330 and Block331, which was closely followed by the major locus for TGW. The expression levels of the seven candidate genes controlling hull type present in the region between Block330 and Block336 was low during grain development, and no significant difference was observed between the parental lines. Six non-synonymous coding SNPs were found between the two parents in the region. CONCLUSIONS: We constructed a high-density SNP genetic map for the first time in Tartary buckwheat. The mapped major loci controlling TGW and hull type will be valuable for gene cloning and revealing the mechanism underlying grain development and easy dehulling, and marker-assisted selection in Tartary buckwheat.

Integrated microRNA and transcriptome profiling reveal key miRNA-mRNA interaction pairs associated with seed development in Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum).

BACKGROUND: Tartary buckwheat seed development is an extremely complex process involving many gene regulatory pathways. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been identified as the important negative regulators of gene expression and performed crucial regulatory roles in various plant biological processes. However, whether miRNAs participate in Tartary buckwheat seed development remains unexplored. RESULTS: In this study, we first identified 26 miRNA biosynthesis genes in the Tartary buckwheat genome and described their phylogeny and expression profiling. Then we performed small RNA (sRNA) sequencing for Tartary buckwheat seeds at three developmental stages to identify the miRNAs associated with seed development. In total, 230 miRNAs, including 101 conserved and 129 novel miRNAs, were first identified in Tartary buckwheat, and 3268 target genes were successfully predicted. Among these miRNAs, 76 exhibited differential expression during seed development, and 1534 target genes which correspond to 74 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) were identified. Based on integrated analysis of DEMs and their targets expression, 65 miRNA-mRNA interaction pairs (25 DEMs corresponding to 65 target genes) were identified that exhibited significantly opposite expression during Tartary buckwheat seed development, and 6 of the miRNA-mRNA pairs were further verified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and ligase-mediated rapid amplification of 5' cDNA ends (5'-RLM-RACE). Functional annotation of the 65 target mRNAs showed that 56 miRNA-mRNA interaction pairs major involved in cell differentiation and proliferation, cell elongation, hormones response, organogenesis, embryo and endosperm development, seed size, mineral elements transport, and flavonoid biosynthesis, which indicated that they are the key miRNA-mRNA pairs for Tartary buckwheat seed development. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provided insights for the first time into miRNA-mediated regulatory pathways in Tartary buckwheat seed development and suggested that miRNAs play important role in Tartary buckwheat seed development. These findings will be help to study the roles and regulatory mechanism of miRNAs in Tartary buckwheat seed development.

Reversine suppresses osteosarcoma cell growth through targeting BMP-Smad1/5/8-mediated angiogenesis.

Reversine, or 2-(4-morpholinoanilino)-6cyclohexylaminopurine, is a 2,6-disubstituted purine derivative. This small molecule exhibits tumor-suppressive activities through different molecular mechanisms. In this study, in vitro and in vivo angiogenic models were used to elucidate the effect of Reversine on angiogenesis in the tumor suppression. Firstly, we grafted osteosarcoma-derived MNNG/HOS cell aggregates onto chick embryonic chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) to examine the vascularization of these grafts following Reversine treatment. Following culture, it was determined that Reversine inhibited MNNG/HOS grafts growth, and decreased the density of blood vessels in the chick CAM. We then used CAM and chick embryonic yolk-sac membrane (YSM) to investigate the effects of Reversine on angiogenesis. The results revealed Reversine inhibited the proliferation of endothelial cells, where cells were mainly arrested at G1/S phase of the cell cycle. Scratch-wound assay with HUVECs revealed that Reversine suppressed cell migration in vitro. Furthermore, endothelial cells tube formation assay and chick aortic arch sprouting assay demonstrated Reversine inhibited the sprouting, migration of endothelial cells. Lastly, qPCR and western blot analyses showed BMP-associated Smad1/5/8 signaling expressions were up-regulated by Reversine treatment. Our results showed that Reversine could suppress tumor growth by inhibiting angiogenesis through BMP signaling, and suggests a potential use of Reversine as an anti-tumor therapy.

Cold atmospheric plasma as an interface biotechnology for enhancing surgical implants.

Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) has been intensively researched for direct treatment of living cells and tissues. Significant attention is now being given to its indirect applications in plasma medicine. Surgical implant is an exemplary conveyor to deliver the therapeutic effects of plasma to patients. There is a constant drive to enhance the clinical performance of surgical implants, targeting at the implant-tissue interface. As a versatile and potent tool, CAP is capable of ameliorating surgical implants using various strategies of interface biotechnology, such as surface modification, coating deposition, and drug delivery. Understanding the chemical, physical, mechanical, electrical, and pharmacological processes occurring at the implant-tissue interface is crucial to effective application of CAP as an interface biotechnology. This preclinical review focuses on the recent advances in CAP-assisted implant-based therapy for major surgical specialties. The ultimate goal here is to elicit unique opportunities and challenges for translating implant science to plasma medicine.

Analysis of structural injury patterns in peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer and retinal ganglion cell layer in ethambutol-induced optic neuropathy.

BACKGROUND: We investigated structural injury patterns in the peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (p-RNFL) and ganglion cell inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) caused by ethambutol treatment. METHODS: Sixty-four patients undergoing ethambutol treatment at Zhejiang Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine Integrated Hospital were recruited. Fourteen (14) exhibited visual dysfunction (abnormal group), and the remaining 50 had no visual dysfunction (subclinical group). The thickness of the p-RNFL, total macular retina layer and GCIPL were measured using Cirrus-HD Optical coherence tomography (Cirrus-HD OCT, Cirrus high-definition optical coherence tomography), and compared with 60 healthy, age-matched controls. RESULTS: The p-RNFL thickness was similar in both subclinical and control groups. When compared with the control group, p-RNFL thickness in the abnormal group was significantly increased in the inferior and superior quadrants (GEE, P = 0.040, P = 0.010 respectively). In contrast with the subclinical group, p-RNFL thickness in the inferior quadrant was increased in the abnormal group (GEE, P = 0.047). The GCIPL thickness in the inferonasal and inferior sectors was significantly deceased in the subclinical group when compared with controls (GEE, P = 0.028, P = 0.047, respectively). The average and minimum value of GCIPL thickness, and thickness in the superonasal, inferior, inferotemporal, superotemporal and superior sectors were significantly decreased in the abnormal group when compared with controls (GEE, P = 0.016, P = 0.001, P = 0.028, P = 0.010, P = 0.012, P = 0.015, P = 0.010, respectively). The cube average macular thickness (CAMT) in the abnormal group was significantly thinner than controls (GEE, P = 0.027). CONCLUSIONS: GCIPL measurements using Cirrus-HD OCT detected retinal ganglion cell layer loss following ethambutol treatment, before visual dysfunction occurred.

Sleep timing and hygiene practices of high bedtime procrastinators: a direct observational study.

BACKGROUND: Bedtime procrastination (BP) has been proven to be an important indicator of sleep insufficiency from a psychological perspective. However, the effect of BP on sleep patterns related to sleep deficiency remains unknown. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of self-reported sleep timing and hygiene practices between high and low-moderate bedtime procrastinators. It also aimed to examine the relationship between these characteristics and high level of BP. METHODS: A total of 391 Chinese college students were recruited for this study. Participants completed questionnaires on demographics, sleep timing variables, the Sleep Hygiene Practice Scale (SHPS) and the Bedtime Procrastination Scale (BPS). RESULTS: High bedtime procrastinators were more likely to have higher SHPS global and subdomain scores (Ps < 0.001). They also were more likely to exhibit later sleep onset, sleep offset and rise time on both weekdays and weekends (Ps < 0.01). The significant independent determinant factors of the prevalence of high BP were: SHPS total score [odds ratio (OR) = 1.05, P < 0.001], arousal-related behaviour (OR = 1.07, P = 0.007), sleep schedule and timing (OR = 1.12, P < 0.001) and sleep onset on weekdays (OR = 2.65, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: High bedtime procrastinators showed maladaptive sleep-related variables, which mainly manifested as changes in arousal-related behaviour and sleep schedule and timing, as well as delays in sleep onset time on weekdays. The findings could help guide the formulation of appropriate interventions in primary health care.

The impact of bedtime procrastination on depression symptoms in Chinese medical students.

PURPOSE: Depression symptoms are closely related to inadequate sleep and are experienced by medical students at an increased rate. Bedtime procrastination is considered a new, important predictor of sleep deficiency. However, whether there is a correlation between bedtime procrastination and depression symptoms remains unclear. This study aimed to examine the impact of bedtime procrastination on depression symptoms among medical students. METHODS: A total of 419 Chinese medical students were invited to participate in this study, and 401 participants (mean age, 19.48 years; range, 17-23 years) were included in the final statistical analysis. Depression symptoms and bedtime procrastination were assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and the Bedtime Procrastination Scale (BPS), respectively. RESULTS: The prevalence of depression symptoms in Chinese medical students was 26.9%. The mean BPS scores were significantly higher in the depressed group than in the non-depressed group. Binary logistic regression analysis identified that bedtime procrastination was an independent contributor to the prevalence of depression symptoms. Further correlation and multiple linear regression analyses demonstrated that the BDI scores were significantly and positively associated with the BPS scores in students without depression, while the BDI scores correlated with male students experiencing depression. CONCLUSIONS: Depression symptoms, which become more prevalent among Chinese medical students, are found to independently associate with bedtime procrastination. In particular, the severity of depression symptoms shows a positive correlation with increased bedtime procrastination before developing into depression, and it shows correlation with sex only in a state of depression.

Dysbacteriosis-Derived Lipopolysaccharide Causes Embryonic Osteopenia through Retinoic-Acid-Regulated DLX5 Expression.

Growing evidence suggests an adverse impact of gut microbiota dysbiosis on human health. However, it remains unclear whether embryonic osteogenesis is affected by maternal gut dysbacteriosis. In this study, we observed that elevated lipopolysaccharide (LPS) levels led to skeletal developmental retardation in an established mouse model of gut microbiota dysbiosis. Using chick embryos exposed to dysbacteriosis-derived LPS, we found restriction in the development of long bones as demonstrated by Alcian blue and alizarin red staining. Micro-CT and histological analysis exhibited decreased trabecular volume, bone mineral density, and collagen production, as well as suppressed osteoblastic gene expression (Ocn, Runx2, Osx, and Dlx5) in chick embryonic phalanges following LPS treatment. Atomic force microscopy manifested decreased roughness of MC3T3-E1 cells and poorly developed matrix vesicles (MVs) in presence of LPS. The expression of the aforementioned osteoblastic genes was suppressed in MC3T3-E1 cells as well. High-throughput RNA sequencing indicated that retinoic acid (RA) may play an important role in LPS-induced osteopenia. The addition of RA suppressed Dlx5 expression in MC3T3-E1 cells, as was also seen when exposed to LPS. Quantitative PCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescent staining showed that retinoic acid receptor α (RARα) was upregulated by LPS or RA treatment, while the expression of DLX5 was downregulated. CYP1B1 expression was increased by LPS treatment in MC3T3-E1 cells, which might be attributed to the increased inflammatory factors and subsequently activated NF-κB signaling. Eventually, blocking RA signals with AGN193109 successfully restored LPS-inhibited osteoblastic gene expression. Taken together, our data reveals that maternal gut microbiota dysbiosis can interfere with bone ossification, in which Dlx5 expression regulated by RA signaling plays an important role.

TGF-ß Signaling Induces the Expression of OPN in Blood Vessel Endothelial Cells.

BACKGROUND: The mechanism of blood vessel formation and degeneration still remains unclear. Transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1) signaling is a critical pathway in this progression and can induce multiple biological effects. Osteopontin (OPN) is involved in mineral metabolism and the inflammatory response associated with vascular calcification. METHODS: To identify the relationship between TGF-ß signaling pathway and OPN, we stimulated human vascular endothelial cells (HVECs) and human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) using various concentration of TGF-ß1 in vitro. RESULTS: As assessed by flow cytometry and western blots, apoptosis levels were significantly increased with TGF-ß1 treatment. We also demonstrated that OPN increased in vitro with TGF-ß signaling by western blot and quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analyses. The inhibitory phosphorylation of endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (eNOS) (Thr495) was also up-regulated by TGF-ß signaling. Meanwhile, the anti-inflammatory factor Nrf2 and the activating phosphorylation of eNOS (Ser1177) were down-regulated. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our findings demonstrate that TGF-ß signaling can induce the expression of OPN, which may play an important role in the dysfunction of the vascular wall.

Unilateral inferior oblique anterior transposition for markedly asymmetric dissociated vertical deviation with unilateral inferior oblique over-action.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the results of unilateral inferior oblique anterior transposition (IOAT) for markedly asymmetric dissociated vertical deviation (DVD) combined with inferior oblique over-action (IOOA). METHODS: Retrospective chart review of the records of all patients with asymmetric DVD combined with unilateral IOOA in the non-dominant eye who received unilateral IOAT on the non-dominant eye. No other muscles were operated on simultaneously. The amount of DVD and IOOA were measured before and after the operation and statistically analysed. RESULTS: Seventeen patients were included. The mean age at surgery was 23.5 ± 8.4 (range 12-38) years old. The mean postoperative follow-up period was 15.7 ± 7.2 (range 6-32) months. The primary position DVD was 19.6 ± 5.4 (range 14-36) PD preoperatively and decreased significantly to 2.9 ± 2.0 (range 0-8) PD postoperatively (P < 0.01). Preoperatively, there were 2, 7, and 8 patients with + 1, + 2, and + 3 IOOA, respectively, and these were reduced from 2.4 ± 0.7 to 0.3 ± 0.4 postoperatively (P < 0.01). None of the patients were complicated obvious hypotropia, anti-elevation syndrome or IOOA in the contralateral eye. CONCLUSIONS: Unilateral IOAT was recommended in patients with asymmetric DVD coexists with unilateral IOOA.

Comparative study of nasal septal retainer and nasal packing in patients undergoing septoplasty.

PURPOSE: Nasal packing is frequently used after septoplasty and some complications caused by nasal packing are unavoidable. A nasal septal retainer has recently been developed. We evaluated the safety and clinical efficacy of the retainer in septoplasty, and the subjective symptoms of patients with the retainer were compared with Merocel nasal packing. METHODS: A prospective, randomized, controlled study was performed in patients who had undergone septoplasty. In total, 39 patients were randomized to receive Merocel (n = 17) or the retainer (n = 22) after septoplasty. The deviation of nasal septum and nasal mucosa was evaluated by endoscopy. The clinical efficacy and subjective symptoms were compared using the visual analog scale. RESULTS: During the packing/retaining period, the mean scores of headache, nasal obstruction, epiphora, and facial pressure in the retainer group were significantly lower than in the Merocel group (P < 0.05); the mean scores of nasal pain, nasal itching, rhinorrhea, dysphagia, and sleep disturbance in the retainer group were lower than in the Merocel group, but the difference did not reach statistical significance. On the removal of Merocel/retainer, nasal pain was significantly lower in patients with the retainer (P < 0.05). In the retainer group, the incidence of grade 1 bleeding was 45.5%, and grade 0 bleeding was 54.5%. In the Merocel group, the incidence of grade 2 bleeding was 23.5%, grade 1 was 47.1%, and grade 0 was 29.4%. CONCLUSIONS: The nasal septal retainer is suitable for use after septoplasty with more beneficial effects than nasal packing.

Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Key Seed-Development Genes in Common Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum).

Seed development is an essential and complex process, which is involved in seed size change and various nutrients accumulation, and determines crop yield and quality. Common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) is a widely cultivated minor crop with excellent economic and nutritional value in temperate zones. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms of seed development in common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum). In this study, we performed RNA-Seq to investigate the transcriptional dynamics and identify the key genes involved in common buckwheat seed development at three different developmental stages. A total of 4619 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Based on the results of Gene Ontology (GO) and KEGG analysis of DEGs, many key genes involved in the seed development, including the Ca2+ signal transduction pathway, the hormone signal transduction pathways, transcription factors (TFs), and starch biosynthesis-related genes, were identified. More importantly, 18 DEGs were identified as the key candidate genes for seed size through homologous query using the known seed size-related genes from different seed plants. Furthermore, 15 DEGs from these identified as the key genes of seed development were selected to confirm the validity of the data by using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), and the results show high consistency with the RNA-Seq results. Taken together, our results revealed the underlying molecular mechanisms of common buckwheat seed development and could provide valuable information for further studies, especially for common buckwheat seed improvement.

Antidepressants use and risk of cataract development: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Epidemiological studies suggest that antidepressants use may increase the risk of cataract, but the results are inconclusive. We aimed to examine this association by performing a systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: Relevant studies were identified by searching PubMed and Web of Science databases through June 2017. We included studies that reported risk estimates for the association between antidepressants use and cataract risk. A random-effects model was used to calculate the summary odds ratio (OR) with its 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: We identified seven studies of antidepressants use and risk of cataract involving 447,672 cases and 1,510,391 controls. Overall, the combined ORs (95% CIs) of cataract for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin noradrenalin reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) were 1.12 (1.06-1.19), 1.13 (1.04-1.24), and 1.19 (1.11-1.28), respectively. A certain degree of heterogeneity was observed across studies (P < 0.001, I 2 = 92.2% for SSRIs, P = 0.026, I 2 = 67.5% for SNRIs, and P = 0.092, I 2 = 58.0% for TCAs). CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis provides evidence of a significant positive association between antidepressants use and risk of cataract. Because of the heterogeneity and limited eligible studies, further prospective studies are warranted to confirm the preliminary findings of our study.

Indolediketopiperazine Alkaloids from Eurotium cristatum EN-220, an Endophytic Fungus Isolated from the Marine Alga Sargassum thunbergii.

Four new indolediketopiperazine derivatives (1-4), along with nine known congeners (5-13), were isolated and identified from the culture extract of Eurotium cristatum EN-220, an endophytic fungus obtained from the marine alga Sargassum thunbergii. The structures of thesecompounds were elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis and the absolute configurations of compounds 1-4 were established by NOESY experiments and by chiral HPLC analyses of their acid hydrolysates. The absolute configuration of C-8 (a quaternary carbon substituted with a hydroxyl group) in 5 of preechinulin class was firstly determined by electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculations. All these compounds were evaluatedfor brine shrimp (Artemia salina) lethality and nematicidal activity as well as antioxidativeand antimicrobial potency.

Synthesis of Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes/TiO2 Composite and Its Photocatalytic Activity.

TiO2 particles coated Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT/TiO2 composite) were prepared via a sol-gel method using Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and tetrabutyl titanate as raw materials. The phase constitutes and microstructures of the prepared composite were analyzed by XRD and TEM, respectively. Their photocatalytic activities were investigated under simulated ultra-violet light and visible-light irradiation for the degradation of methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue (MB) aqueous solution, respectively. The experimental results indicated that TiO2 calcined at temperatures of 400-600 degrees C in the MWCNT/TiO2 composite was mainly composed of nanometric anatase. The composite exhibited enhanced absorption properties in the visible-light region compared to pure TiO2, which was attributed to the enhanced light electron-hole separation by adding MWCNTs.