Enhancement of hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis for methane production by nano zero-valent iron in soils.

Nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) is attracting increasing attention as the most commonly used environmental remediation material. However, given the high surface area and strong reducing capabilities of nZVI, there is a lack of understanding regarding its effects on the complex anaerobic methane production process in flooded soils. To elucidate the mechanism of CH4 production in soil exposed to nZVI, paddy soil was collected and subjected to anaerobic culture under continuous flooding conditions, with various dosages of nZVI applied. The results showed that the introduction of nZVI into anaerobic flooded rice paddy systems promoted microbial utilization of acetate and carbon dioxide as carbon sources for methane production, ultimately leading to increased methane production. Following the introduction of nZVI into the soil, there was a rapid increase in hydrogen levels in the headspace, surpassing that of the control group. The hydrogen levels in both the experimental and control groups were depleted by the 29th day of culture. These findings suggest that nZVI exposure facilitates the enrichment of hydrogenotrophic methanogens, providing them with a favorable environment for growth. Additionally, it affected soil physicochemical properties by increasing pH and electrical conductivity. The metagenomic analysis further indicates that under exposure to nZVI, hydrogenotrophic methanogens, particularly Methanobacteriaceae and Methanocellaceae, were enriched. The relative abundance of genes such as mcrA and mcrB associated with methane production was increased. This study provides important theoretical insights into the response of key microbes, functional genes, and methane production pathways to nZVI during anaerobic methane production in rice paddy soils, offering fundamental insights into the long-term fate and risks associated with the introduction of nZVI into soils.

HSP70 and TNF Loci Polymorphism Associated with the Posner-Schlossman Syndrome in a Southern Chinese Population.

Previous studies have shown that HLA gene polymorphisms are associated with the pathogenesis of the Posner-Schlossman syndrome (PSS). This study was aimed at evaluating the associations between HLA-III gene polymorphisms and PSS in a southern Chinese Han population. A total of 150 PSS patients and 183 healthy controls were included in this study. Twenty-one single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of HLA-III genes (including HSP70-1, HSP70-2, HSP70-hom, TNF-α, TNF-ß, C2, and CFB) were genotyped using the SNaPshot technique. Our study showed that the frequencies of G allele at rs909253, A allele at rs1041981, and G allele at rs2844484 of TNF-ß in the patient group were significantly higher than those in healthy controls (Corrected P (P c ) = 0.040, OR = 1.45; P c = 0.033, OR = 1.45; P c = 0.045, OR = 1.58, respectively). The frequency of T allele at rs12190359 of HSP70-1 was significantly lower in PSS patients than those in healthy controls (P c = 0.018 and OR = 0.10). The frequencies of the CCT haplotype of HSP70-1 gene (rs1008438-rs562047-rs12190359) and the ACCCTTT haplotype of HSP70 gene (rs2227956-rs1043618-rs1008438-rs562047-rs12190359-rs2763979-rs6457452) were significantly lower in PSS patients than those in healthy controls (P c = 0.024, OR = 0.10; P c = 0.048, OR = 0.10, respectively). In conclusion, the G allele at rs909253, A allele at rs1041981, and G allele at rs2844484 of TNF-ß gene might be risk factors for PSS, while the T allele at rs12190359 of HSP70-1 gene and specific haplotypes of the HSP70-1 and HSP70 genes might be protective factors for PSS.

Advances in base editing with an emphasis on an AAV-based strategy.

The Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)-based base editors have been developed for precisely installing point mutations in genomes with high efficiency. Two editing systems of cytosine base editors (CBEs) and adenine base editors (ABEs) have been developed for conversion of C.G-to-T.A and A.T-to-G.C, respectively, showing the prominence in genomic DNA correction and mutation. Here, we summarize recent optimized approaches in improving base editors, including the evolution of Cas proteins, the choice of deamination enzymes, modification on linker length, base-editor expression, and addition of functional domains. Specifically, in this paper we highlight a strategy of split-intein mediated base-editor reconstitution for its adeno-associated virus (AAV) delivery. The purpose of this article is to offer readers with a better understanding of AAV-mediated base editors, and facilitate them to use this tool in in vivo experiments and potential clinical applications.

Biodistribution and acute toxicity of cadmium-free quantum dots with different surface functional groups in mice following intratracheal inhalation.

Indium phosphide/zinc sulfate (InP/ZnS) quantum dots (QDs) are presumed to be less hazardous than those that contain cadmium. However, the toxicological profile has not been established. The present study investigated the acute toxicity of InP/ZnS QDs with different surface modifications (COOH, NH2, and OH) in mice after pulmonary aerosol inhalation. InP/ZnS QDs were able to pass through the blood-gas barrier and enter the circulation, and subsequently accumulated in major organs. No obvious changes were observed in the body weight or major organ coefficients. Red blood cell counts and platelet-related indicators were in the normal range, but the proportion of white blood cells was altered. The InP/ZnS QDs caused varying degrees of changes in some serum markers, but no histopathological abnormalities related to InP/ZnS QDs treatment was observed in major organs except that hyperemia in alveolar septa was found in lung sections. These results suggested that the effects of respiratory exposure to InP/ZnS QDs on the lungs need to be fully considered in future biomedical application although the overall toxicity of quantum dots is relatively low.

LUADpp: an effective prediction model on prognosis of lung adenocarcinomas based on somatic mutational features.

BACKGROUND: Lung adenocarcinoma is the most common type of lung cancers. Whole-genome sequencing studies disclosed the genomic landscape of lung adenocarcinomas. however, it remains unclear if the genetic alternations could guide prognosis prediction. Effective genetic markers and their based prediction models are also at a lack for prognosis evaluation. METHODS: We obtained the somatic mutation data and clinical data for 371 lung adenocarcinoma cases from The Cancer Genome Atlas. The cases were classified into two prognostic groups (3-year survival), and a comparison was performed between the groups for the somatic mutation frequencies of genes, followed by development of computational models to discrete the different prognosis. RESULTS: Genes were found with higher mutation rates in good (≥ 3-year survival) than in poor (< 3-year survival) prognosis group of lung adenocarcinoma patients. Genes participating in cell-cell adhesion and motility were significantly enriched in the top gene list with mutation rate difference between the good and poor prognosis group. Support Vector Machine models with the gene somatic mutation features could well predict prognosis, and the performance improved as feature size increased. An 85-gene model reached an average cross-validated accuracy of 81% and an Area Under the Curve (AUC) of 0.896 for the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves. The model also exhibited good inter-stage prognosis prediction performance, with an average AUC of 0.846 for the ROC curves. CONCLUSION: The prognosis of lung adenocarcinomas is related with somatic gene mutations. The genetic markers could be used for prognosis prediction and furthermore provide guidance for personal medicine.