Role of genetics in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a large cohort study in Chinese mainland population.

BACKGROUND: A large number of new causative and risk genes for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) have been identified mostly in patients of European ancestry. In contrast, we know relatively little regarding the genetics of ALS in other ethnic populations. This study aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the genetics of ALS in an unprecedented large cohort of Chinese mainland population and correlate with the clinical features of rare variants carriers. METHODS: A total of 1587 patients, including 64 familial ALS (FALS) and 1523 sporadic ALS (SALS), and 1866 in-house controls were analysed by whole-exome sequencing and/or testing for G4C2 repeats in C9orf72. Forty-one ALS-associated genes were analysed. FINDINGS: 155 patients, including 26 (40.6%) FALS and 129 (8.5%) SALS, carrying rare pathogenic/likely pathogenic (P/LP) variants of ALS causative genes were identified. SOD1 was the most common mutated gene, followed by C9orf72, FUS, NEK1, TARDBP and TBK1. By burden analysis, rare variants in SOD1, FUS and TARDBP contributed to the collective risk for ALS (p<2.5e-6) at the gene level, but at the allelic level TARDBP p.Gly294Val and FUS p.Arg521Cys and p.Arg521His were the most important single variants causing ALS. Clinically, P/LP variants in TARDBP and C9orf72 were associated with poor prognosis, in FUS linked with younger age of onset, and C9orf72 repeats tended to affect cognition. CONCLUSIONS: Our data provide essential information for understanding the genetic and clinical features of ALS in China and for optimal design of genetic testing and evaluation of disease prognosis.

The mutation spectrum of Parkinson-disease-related genes in early-onset Parkinson's disease in ethnic Chinese.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Recent genetic progress has shown many causative/risk genes linked to Parkinson's disease (PD), mainly in patients of European ancestry. The study aimed to investigate the PD-related genes and determine the mutational spectrum of early-onset PD in ethnic Chinese. METHODS: In this study, whole-exome sequencing and/or gene dosage analysis were performed in 704 early-onset PD (EOPD) patients (onset age ≤45 years) and 1866 controls. Twenty-six PD-related genes and 20 other genes linked to neurodegenerative and lysosome diseases were analysed. RESULTS: Eighty-two (11.6%, 82/704) EOPD patients carrying rare pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants in PD-related genes were identified. The mutation frequency in autosomal recessive inheritance EOPD (42.9%, 27/63) was much higher than that in autosomal dominant inheritance EOPD (0.9%, 12/110) or sporadic EOPD (8.1%, 43/531). Bi-allelic mutations in PRKN were the most frequent, accounting for 5.1% of EOPD cases. Three common pathogenic variants, p.A53V in SNCA, p.G284R in PRKN and p.P53Afs*38 in CHCHD2, occur exclusively in Asians. The putative damaging variants from GBA, PRKN, DJ1, PLA2G6 and GCH1 contributed to the collective risk for EOPD. Notably, the protein-truncating variants in CHCHD2 were enriched in EOPD, especially for p.P53Afs*38, which was also found in three patients from an independent cohort of patients with late-onset PD (n = 1300). Functional experiments confirmed that truncated CHCHD2 variants cause loss of function and are linked to mitochondrial dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: Our study reveals that the genetic spectrum of EOPD in Chinese, which may help develop genetic scanning strategies, provided more evidence supporting CHCHD2 in PD.

Organocatalytic Asymmetric Synthesis of Benzothiazolopyrimidines via [4 + 2] Cyclization of 2-Benzothiazolimines and Aldehydes.

We report the direct asymmetric synthesis of pyrimido[2,1-b]benzothiazoles using a commercially available chiral amine catalyst. A variety of 2-benzothiazolimines and aldehydes were well tolerated under the reaction conditions and generated the corresponding products in 81-99% yields with excellent diastereoselectivities and enantioselectivities (up to >20:1 dr, 99% ee). Furthermore, the products could be easily converted to other useful chiral building blocks.

Asymmetric Synthesis of Oxindole-Derived Vicinal Tetrasubstituted Acyclic Amino Acid Derivatives by the Mannich-Type Reaction.

The catalytic asymmetric Mannich-type reaction of 3-hydroxy/3-aminooxindoles with 2-aminoacrylates to afford oxindole-derived acyclic amino acid derivatives bearing vicinal tetrasubstituted stereocenters is reported. (DHQ)2PHAL (4g) and quinine-derived squaramide (4d) were identified as efficient catalysts. Transformations of the Mannich-type reaction products highlight the utility of this synthetic strategy.

Spatiotemporal dynamics, community assembly and functional potential of sedimentary archaea in reservoirs: coaction of stochasticity and nutrient load.

Archaea participate in biogeochemical cycles in aquatic ecosystems, and deciphering their community dynamics and assembly mechanisms is key to understanding their ecological functions. Here, sediments from 12 selected reservoirs from the Wujiang and Pearl River basins in southwest China were investigated using 16S rRNA Illumina sequencing and quantitative PCR for archaeal abundance and richness in all seasons. Generally, archaeal abundance and α-diversity were significantly correlated with temperature; however, ß-diversity analysis showed that community structures varied greatly among locations rather than seasons, indicating a distance-decay pattern with geographical variation. The null model revealed the major contribution of stochasticity to archaeal community assembly, which was further confirmed by the neutral community model that could explain 71.7% and 90.2% of the variance in archaeal assembly in the Wujiang and Pearl River basins, respectively. Moreover, sediment total nitrogen and organic carbon levels were significantly correlated with archaeal abundance and α-diversity. Interestingly, these nutrient levels were positively and negatively correlated, respectively, with the abundance of methanogenic and ammonia-oxidized archaea: the dominant sedimentary archaea in these reservoirs. Taken together, this work systematically characterized archaeal community profiles in reservoir sediments and demonstrated the combined action of stochastic processes and nutrient load in shaping archaeal communities in reservoir ecosystems.

Design, Synthesis, and Evaluation of Small Molecule Gαq/11 Protein Inhibitors for the Treatment of Uveal Melanoma.

Uveal melanoma is the ocular malignancy and mainly driven by oncogenic mutations of Gαq/11 proteins. Previous targeted therapy for melanoma treatment was limited to specific downstream signaling pathway, and inhibiting the "molecular switches" G proteins for melanoma treatment therapy was rarely described. We herein report the discovery of imidazopiperazine derivatives as Gαq/11 protein inhibitors. The most promising compound GQ127 showed good efficacy and safety in inositol monophosphate (IP1) assay by directly inhibiting Gαq/11 proteins. GQ127 induced uveal melanoma cells apoptosis and displayed potent antitumor activities in uveal melanoma cells viability, migration, and invasion. The effects of GQ127 on Gαq/11 signaling pathway were confirmed by analyzing the downstream effectors yes-associated protein (YAP) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). More importantly, GQ127 significantly suppressed UM xenograft growth in mouse model without severe toxicity at the testing dose. These findings provide a lead compound that directly targets the Gαq/11 proteins for uveal melanoma treatment.

Tyrosine phosphatase SHP2 inhibitors in tumor-targeted therapies.

Src homology containing protein tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP2) represents a noteworthy target for various diseases, serving as a well-known oncogenic phosphatase in cancers. As a result of the low cell permeability and poor bioavailability, the traditional inhibitors targeting the protein tyrosine phosphate catalytic sites are generally suffered from unsatisfactory applied efficacy. Recently, a particularly large number of allosteric inhibitors with striking inhibitory potency on SHP2 have been identified. In particular, few clinical trials conducted have made significant progress on solid tumors by using SHP2 allosteric inhibitors. This review summarizes the development and structure-activity relationship studies of the small-molecule SHP2 inhibitors for tumor therapies, with the purpose of assisting the future development of SHP2 inhibitors with improved selectivity, higher oral bioavailability and better physicochemical properties.

Association Analysis of WNT3, HLA-DRB5 and IL1R2 Polymorphisms in Chinese Patients With Parkinson's Disease and Multiple System Atrophy.

Background: The association between inflammation and neurodegeneration has long been observed in parkinson's disease (PD) and multiple system atrophy (MSA). Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and meta-analyses have identified several risk loci in inflammation-associated genes associated with PD. Objective: To investigate whether polymorphisms in some inflammation-associated genes could modulate the risk of developing PD and MSA in a Southwest Chinese population. Methods: A total of 2,706 Chinese subjects comprising 1340 PD, 483 MSA and 883 healthy controls were recruited in the study. Three polymorphisms (rs2074404 GG/GT/TT, rs17425622 CC/CT/TT, rs34043159 CC/CT/TT) in genes linked to inflammation in all the subjects were genotyped by using the Sequenom iPLEX Assay. Results: The allele G of WNT3 rs2074404 can increase risk on PD (OR: 1.048, 95% CI: 1.182-1.333, p = 0.006), exclusively in the LOPD subgroup (OR: 1.166, 95% CI:1.025-1.327, p = 0.019), but not in EOPD or MSA. And the recessive model analysis also demonstrated an increased PD risk in GG genotype of this locus (OR = 1.331, p = 0.007). However, no significant differences were observed in the genotype distributions and alleles of HLA-DRB5 rs17425622 and IL1R2 rs34043159 between the PD patients and controls, between the MSA patients and controls, or between subgroups of PD or MSA and controls. Conclusion: Our results suggested the allele G of WNT3 rs2074404 have an adverse effect on PD and particularly, on the LOPD subgroup among a Chinese population.

Creatine kinase in the diagnosis and prognostic prediction of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a retrospective case-control study.

Creatine kinase is a muscle enzyme that has been reported at various levels in different studies involving patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. In the present retrospective case-control study, we included 582 patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and 582 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. All amyotrophic lateral sclerosis participants received treatment in the Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, China, between May 2008 and December 2018. Serum creatine kinase levels in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis were significantly higher than those in healthy controls. Subgroup analysis revealed that serum creatine kinase levels in men were higher than those in women in both amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients and healthy controls. Compared with patients with bulbar-onset amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, patients with limb-onset amyotrophic lateral sclerosis had higher creatine kinase levels. Spearman's correlation analysis revealed that serum creatine kinase levels were not correlated with body mass index, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale-Revised score, or progression rate. After adjusting for prognostic covariates, higher log creatine kinase values were correlated with higher overall survival in the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients. We also investigated the longitudinal changes in serum creatine kinase levels in 81 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients; serum creatine kinase levels were decreased at the second blood test, which was sampled at least 6 months after the first blood test. Together, our results suggest that serum creatine kinase levels can be used as an independent factor for predicting the prognosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients. This study received ethical approval from the Ethics Committee of West China Hospital, China (approval No. 2015(236)) on December 23, 2015.

Genetic Analysis of ZNF Protein Family Members for Early-Onset Parkinson's Disease in Chinese Population.

Functional and genetic studies have identified association between several Zinc finger (ZNF) proteins and Parkinson's disease (PD). However, most of them were still awaiting further replications, especially in the Asian population. Here, we systematically selected PD-relevant ZNF genes and analyzed the genetic associations between these ZNFs and PD in a large Chinese PD cohort. We identified rare variants (minor allele frequency < 0.01) in 743 unrelated patients with early-onset PD (EOPD, age at onset < 50 years) using whole exome sequencing and evaluated the association between rare variants and EOPD at both allele and gene levels. Totally 91 rare variants were identified in ZNF746, ZNF646, ZNF184, ZNF165, ZND219, and GLIS1. One variant p.R373H in ZNF219 and two variants p.G161D and p.R158H in ZNF746 were significantly associated with EOPD, and gene-based burden analysis showed enrichment of rare variants of ZNF746 in EOPD. Our findings build up the connection between ZNF746 and PD from a genetic perspective for the first time, supplement current understanding for the genetic role of ZNFs in EOPD, and broaden the mutation spectrum in PD.

RNA interference-mediated inhibition of wild-type Torsin A expression increases apoptosis caused by oxidative stress in cultured cells.

To assess RNAi mediated inhibition of the expression of wt-DYT1 on H(2)O(2)-induced toxicity in NIH 3T3 cells and primary cortical neurons. To detect the function of wild-type Torsin A and the effect of SiRNA on the wt-DYT1 gene. The shRNA expression vector was constructed by ligating annealed complementary shRNA oligonucleotides into the down-stream of the human U6 promoter (PU6) of the RNAi-ready pSIREN-Shuttle vector. Then, the pSIREN-Shuttle-DYT1-shRNA cassette was ligated to Adeno-X Viral DNA to construct the recombinant adenoviral vector pAd-DYT1-shRNA. Cultured cerebral cortical neurons and NIH 3T3 cells were transfected with pAd-DYT1-shRNA and pSIREN-Shuttle-DYT1-shRNA. We evaluated NIH 3T3 cells and neurons in the presence of oxidative stress using a TUNEL assay under different conditions. The knockdown efficacy of the DYT1 was confirmed by real-time RT-PCR and Western Blot analysis. After exposure to H(2)O(2,) the quantity of NIH 3T3 cells transfected with pSIREN-Shuttle-DYT1-shRNA, which stained positively in the TUNEL assay, was significantly higher than the cells transfected with pSIREN-Shuttle-negative control-shRNA. (44.85 +/- 1.81% vs. 8.98 +/- 2.73%, t = 26.168). There were significantly more apoptotic neurons infected with pAd-DYT1-shRNA (45.63 +/- 7.53%) than neurons infected with pAd-X-negative control-shRNA (17.33 +/- 2.43%) (t = 9.816). The observed silencing of wild-type Torsin A expression by DYT1-shRNA was sequence-specific. RNAi-mediated inhibition of the expression of wild-type Torsin A increases apoptosis caused by oxidative stress. It is reasonable to consider that wild-type Torsin A has the capacity to protect cortical neurons against oxidative stress, and in the development of DYT1-delta GAG-dystonia the neuroprotective function of wild-type Torsin A may be compromised.

Asymmetric Total Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of the Natural PDE4 Inhibitor Toddacoumalone.

We describe herein the first asymmetric total synthesis and biological evaluation of the natural PDE4 inhibitor toddacoumalone and its stereoisomers. The key step of the total synthesis is a formal asymmetric [4 + 2] cycloaddition reaction catalyzed by chiral secondary amine catalysts. A variety of pyranoquinolinones and 3-methylcrotonaldehyde are well tolerated under the optimized reaction conditions, which paved the way for further SAR studies. Further biological evaluation showed 1a' with the best PDE4 inhibitory activity (IC50 = 0.18 µM).

Organocatalytic Asymmetric Three-Component Povarov Reactions of Anilines and Aldehydes.

We report the first highly enantio- and diastereoselective three-component Povarov reaction between anilines and aldehydes catalyzed by a chiral amine catalyst. A wide variety of substituted tetrahydroquinolines were obtained with moderate to good yields and excellent enantioselectivity and diastereoselectivity (up to 99% ee and >95:5 dr) under the reaction conditions. Furthermore, the reaction intermediates could be efficiently converted to other valuable building blocks.

Arsenic binding to iron(II) minerals produced by an iron(III)-reducing Aeromonas strain isolated from paddy soil.

An iron reducing bacterial strain was isolated from a paddy soil and identified as a member of the Aeromonas group by 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. When the cells were growing with dissolved Fe(III) as electron acceptor in the presence of As(V), Fe(II) minerals (siderite and vivianite) were formed and dissolved As was removed efficiently from solution. When the cells were growing with the Fe(III) hydroxide mineral (ferrihydrite) as electron acceptor in the presence of As(V), ferrihydrite was reduced and dissolved As(V) concentrations decreased sharply. Our results demonstrated firstly that members of the Aeromonas group can reduce Fe(III) in paddy soils, and secondly that iron reduction does not necessarily lead to arsenic mobilization. However, As immobilization can occur in environments that contain significant concentrations of counter ions such as bicarbonate and phosphate.

Isolation and characteristics of the CN gene, a tobacco mosaic virus resistance N gene homolog, from tobacco.

Nicotiana rustica L. HZNH, a native Chinese tobacco germplasm, displays a hypersensitive response (HR) and systemic acquired resistance following infection with tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). A resistance gene, CN, cloned from HZNH plants, was homologous to the N and NH genes identified in other Nicotiana species. The CN coding region (3423 bp) shares 93.63% and 86.50% nucleotide identity with N and NH, respectively. Whereas the five CN exon sequences are highly homologous with those of N and NH, the four introns differ significantly in length and sequence. Sequence analysis revealed that CN belongs to the TIR/NBS/LRR gene class. Expression of CN was up-regulated after TMV infection and was temperature sensitive. Organ-specific expression analysis suggested that CN transcripts accumulated at high levels in leaves, low levels in stems, and minimal levels in roots. When CN was inserted into TMV-susceptible N. tabacum cv. K326 plants by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, the transgenic plants displayed HR and systemic HR due to uninhibited movement of the virus.

[Effects of experimental liver injury on the intestinal barrier in rats.].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of experimental liver injury on the intestinal barrier, and to evaluate the significance of plasma D(-)-lactate, diamine oxidase (DAO) and endotoxin in live injury. METHODS: Fifty-five rats were randomized into the acute liver failure group (group C, n = 25), acute liver injury group (group B, n = 15), and control group (group A, n = 15). The concentrations of D(-)-lactate, DAO and endotoxin in plasma were detected by spectrophotograph. The morphology and subcellular structure were observed under optical microscope and transmission electron microscope. RESULTS: Acute liver failure and acute liver injury models were established successfully. The concentrations of D(-)-lactate and DAO in the plasma of experimental groups (group B and C) were significantly higher than those in the control group (P less than 0.05); the concentration of intestinal DAO in experimental groups were significantly lower than that in the control group (P less than 0.05); the level of endotoxin in C group was significantly higher than that in group A and group B (P less than 0.05). CONCLUSION: Liver injury induces hyperpermeability of the rat intestinal mucosal barrier, plasma D(-)-lactate and DAO are sensitive markers for early diagnosis of liver injury, plasma endotoxin may accelerate deterioration of liver function.

Water management impacts the soil microbial communities and total arsenic and methylated arsenicals in rice grains.

The bioavailability of the metalloid arsenic (As) in paddy soil is controlled by microbial cycling of As and other elements such as iron (Fe) and sulfur (S), which are strongly influenced by water management in paddy fields. In this study, we evaluated how water management affects As bioavailability by growing rice plants in a geogenic As-contaminated soil. We determined As speciation in soil porewater and the diversity of the associated microbial community. Continuous flooding enhanced the release of Fe and As and increased arsenite (As(III)) and methylated As species concentrations in the rice grain compared with aerobic treatment. Total inorganic and organic As in the grain was 84% and 81% lower, respectively, in the aerobic treatment compared with the continuous flooding treatment. The amounts of Fe(III)-reducing bacteria (FeRB) increased in the flooded rhizosphere soil. The abundance of FeRB in the soil correlated with the dissolution of Fe and As. Among the As-transformation genes quantified, the aioA gene for As(III) oxidation and arsM gene for As(III) methylation were most abundant. The arsM copy number correlated positively with the levels of dsrB (dissimilatory (bi) sulfite reductase ß-subunit), suggesting that dissimilatory sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) may play an important role in dimethylarsenate (DMAs(V)) production in soil. Our results show that decreased populations of rhizosphere FeRB and SRB contributed to a lower bioavailability of As, and decreased production of methylated arsenicals under oxic conditions.

Ammonia-oxidizing archaea: important players in paddy rhizosphere soil?

The diversity (richness and community composition) of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) in paddy soil with different nitrogen (N) fertilizer amendments for 5 weeks were investigated using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) jand clone library analysis based on the ammonia monooxygenase alpha-subunit (amoA) gene. Ammonia-oxidizing archaea predominated among ammonia-oxidizing prokaryotes in the paddy soil, and the AOA:AOB DNA-targeted amoA gene ratios ranged from 1.2 to 69.3. Ammonia-oxidizing archaea were more abundant in the rhizosphere than in bulk soil. Rice cultivation led to greater abundance of AOA than AOB amoA gene copies and to differences in AOA and AOB community composition. These results show that AOA is dominant in the rhizosphere paddy soil in this study, and we assume that AOA were influenced more by exudation from rice root (e.g. oxygen, carbon dioxide) than AOB.

A novel mutation of the epsilon-sarcoglycan gene in a Chinese family with myoclonus-dystonia syndrome.

In a Chinese myoclonus-dystonia syndrome (MDS) family presented with a phenotype including a typical MDS, cervical dystonia, and writer's cramp, genetic analyses revealed a novel 662 + 1insG heterozygous mutation in exon 5 in the epsilon-sarcoglycan (SGCE) gene, leading to a frameshift with a down stream stop codon. Low SGCE mRNA levels were detected in the mutation carriers by real-time PCR, suggesting that the nonsense mutation might interfere with the stability of SGCE mRNA. This is the first report on Chinese with a SGCE mutation leading to MDS. Our data support the fact that same mutation of SGCE gene can lead to a varied phenotype, even in the same family.