Association between perceived neighborhood environment and depression among residents living in mega-communities in Guiyang, China: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Little was known about the relationship between perceived neighborhood environment and depression among residents living in mega-communities. Furthermore, the mediating effects of physical activity (PA) and anxiety in this relationship have not been investigated. Thus, this study aimed to comprehensively examine the association between perceived neighborhood environment and depression among residents living in mega-communities, and test whether PA and anxiety mediated the association. METHODS: A cross-sectional study on perceived neighborhood environment and depression was conducted among individuals who lived in mega-communities (n = 665) in Guiyang, China from July to August 2022. Perceived neighborhood environment was assessed from the following six aspects: traffic, building quality, accessibility, neighborhood, indoor, and pollution. Depression was measured by the Patients Health Questionnaire-9. Structural equation model was used to evaluate the association between perceived neighborhood environment and depression, and test the mediating effect of PA and anxiety in this association. RESULTS: We found that neighborhood (ß = -0.144, p = 0.002) and PA (ß = -0.074, p < 0.001) were both negatively associated with depression, while anxiety was positively associated with depression (ß = 0.447, p < 0.001). Married residents were less likely to experience depression than residents of other marital status. PA played a mediator role in the relationship between accessibility and depression (ß = 0.014, p = 0.033). PA mediated the relationship between neighborhood and depression (ß = -0.032, p = 0.015). The mediating effect of anxiety in the relationship between perceived neighborhood environment and depression was not significant. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that neighborhood, which was assessed by satisfaction with safety, hygiene, parking, greening, lighting, and building shape, was negatively associated with depression, and PA mediated the relationship.

MsMYB62-like as a negative regulator of anthocyanin biosynthesis in Malus spectabilis.

Crabapple is a valuable tree species in gardens due to its captivating array of flower and leaf colors, rendering it a favored choice in landscaping. The economic and ornamental values of Malus crabapple are closely associated with the biosynthesis of anthocyanin, a pigment responsible for its vibrant hues. The intricate regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis involves the concerted activity of various genes. However, the specific mechanism governing this process in crabapple warrants in-depth exploration. In this study, we explored the inhibitory role of MsMYB62-like in anthocyanin biosynthesis. We identified MsDFR and MsANS as two downstream target genes of MsMYB62-like. These genes encode enzymes integral to the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway. The findings demonstrate that MsMYB62-like directly binds to the promoters of MsDFR and MsANS, resulting in the downregulation of their expression levels. Additionally, our observations indicate that the plant hormone cytokinins exert a suppressive effect on the expression levels of MsMYB62-like, while concurrently upregulating MsDFR and MsANS. This study reveals that the MsMYB62-like-MsDFR/MsANS module plays an important role in governing anthocyanin levels in Malus crabapple. Notably, the regulatory interplay is modulated by the plant hormone cytokinins.

AZG1 is a cytokinin transporter that interacts with auxin transporter PIN1 and regulates the root stress response.

An environmentally responsive root system is crucial for plant growth and crop yield, especially in suboptimal soil conditions. This responsiveness enables the plant to exploit regions of high nutrient density while simultaneously minimizing abiotic stress. Despite the vital importance of root systems in regulating plant growth, significant gaps of knowledge exist in the mechanisms that regulate their architecture. Auxin defines both the frequency of lateral root (LR) initiation and the rate of LR outgrowth. Here, we describe a search for proteins that regulate root system architecture (RSA) by interacting directly with a key auxin transporter, PIN1. The native separation of Arabidopsis plasma membrane protein complexes identified several PIN1 co-purifying proteins. Among them, AZG1 was subsequently confirmed as a PIN1 interactor. Here, we show that, in Arabidopsis, AZG1 is a cytokinin (CK) import protein that co-localizes with and stabilizes PIN1, linking auxin and CK transport streams. AZG1 expression in LR primordia is sensitive to NaCl, and the frequency of LRs is AZG1-dependent under salt stress. This report therefore identifies a potential point for auxin:cytokinin crosstalk, which shapes RSA in response to NaCl.

ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE 5 mediates light-ABA/gibberellin crosstalk networks during seed germination.

Appropriate timing of seed germination is crucial for plant survival and has important implications for agricultural production. Timely germination relies on harmonious interactions between endogenous developmental signals, especially abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellins (GAs), and environmental cues such as light. Recently, a series of investigations of a three-way crosstalk between phytochromes, ABA, and GAs in the regulation of seed germination demonstrated that the transcription factor ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE 5 (ABI5) is a central mediator in the light-ABA/GA cascades. Here, we review current knowledge of ABI5 as a key player in light-, ABA-, and GA-signaling pathways that precisely control seed germination. We highlight recent advances in ABI5-related studies, focusing on the regulation of seed germination, which is strictly controlled at both the transcriptional and the protein levels by numerous light-regulated factors. We further discuss the components of ABA and GA signaling pathways that could regulate ABI5 during seed germination, including transcription factors, E3 ligases, protein kinases, and phosphatases. The precise molecular mechanisms by which ABI5 mediates ABA-GA antagonistic crosstalk during seed germination are also discussed. Finally, some potential research hotspots underlying ABI5-mediated seed germination regulatory networks are proposed.

The phytochrome interacting proteins ERF55 and ERF58 repress light-induced seed germination in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Seed germination is a critical step in the life cycle of plants controlled by the phytohormones abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellin (GA), and by phytochromes, an important class of photoreceptors in plants. Here we show that light-dependent germination is enhanced in mutants deficient in the AP2/ERF transcription factors ERF55 and ERF58. Light-activated phytochromes repress ERF55/ERF58 expression and directly bind ERF55/ERF58 to displace them from the promoter of PIF1 and SOM, genes encoding transcriptional regulators that prevent the completion of germination. The same mechanism controls the expression of genes that encode ABA or GA metabolic enzymes to decrease levels of ABA and possibly increase levels of GA. Interestingly, ERF55 and ERF58 are themselves under transcriptional control of ABA and GA, suggesting that they are part of a self-reinforcing signalling loop which controls the completion of germination. Overall, we identified a role of ERF55/ERF58 in phytochrome-mediated regulation of germination completion.

Highly sensitive gas sensor based on a parity-time-symmetric system.

Achieving extremely high sensitivity is an important indicator in the development of novel and stable gas concentration sensors. In this paper, we present a gas concentration sensor with parity-time symmetry for high sensitivity at low concentrations. The proposed sensor can detect toxic gases, such as benzene, bromine, and acetone, by probing the faint changing of the permittivity. Furthermore, the level of the sensitivity can be adjusted by the resistance segment, which is realized by various metallic formations. Our proposed structure provides a novel idea for the development of future gas concentration sensors, showing an exciting prospect for gas sensing technologies.

Active beam manipulation and convolution operation in VO2-integrated coding terahertz metasurfaces.

Coding metasurfaces have received tremendous interest due to their unprecedented control of beams through the flexible design of coding sequences. However, realizing tunable coding metasurfaces with scattering-pattern shifts in the terahertz range is still challenging. Here, we propose a VO2-integrated coding metasurface to realize a thermally controlled scattering-pattern shift by convolution operation. The required phase profiles and high amplitudes of 1-bit and 2-bit coding metasurfaces are easily obtained only by changing the length of the VO2 cut-wires. The insulator-metal phase transition of the VO2 cut-wires leads to an ultrafast switching effect between multiple deflected scattering beams and one normally reflected beam. In particular, the VO2 phase transition contributes to dynamical convolution operations of the 2-bit coding metasurface. The proposed VO2-integrated coding metasurfaces are important for realizing tunable terahertz beam manipulation as well as arbitrary required scattering beams.

One-step removal of harmful algal blooms by dual-functional flocculant based on self-branched chitosan integrated with flotation function.

Harmful algal blooms induce severe environmental problems. It is challenging to remove algae by the current available treatments involving complicate process and costly instruments. Here, we developed a CaO2@PEG-loaded water-soluble self-branched chitosan (CP-SBC) system, which can remove algae from water in one-step without additional instrumentation. This approach utilizes a novel flocculant (self-branched chitosan) integrated with flotation function (induced by CaO2@PEG). CP-SBC exhibited better flocculation performance than commercial flocculants, which is attributed to the enhanced bridging and sweeping effect of branched chitosan. CP-SBC demonstrated outstanding biocompatibility, which was verified by zebrafish test and algae activity test. CaO2@PEG-loaded self-branched chitosan can serve as an "Air flotation system" to spontaneous float the flocs after flocculation by sustainably released O2. Furthermore, CP-SBC can improve water quality through minimizing dissolved oxygen depletion and reducing total phosphorus concentrations.

Transparent floatable magnetic alginate sphere used as photocatalysts carrier for improving photocatalytic efficiency and recycling convenience.

Practical application of powder photocatalysts is far from satisfying due to their low photon utilization, inconvenient recovery and potential environmental risk. In this study, an easily recoverable, environmentally friendly and highly transparent floatable magnetic photocatalyst carrier was prepared based on biopolymer alginate and Fe3O4 particles. Further, three different types of photocatalysts were chosen as model semiconductor photocatalysts and loaded on the shell of the carriers. The freeze process facilitated the formation of internal cavities that enhanced floating ability and transparency of the spheres. Meanwhile, the excellent floating performance offered massive reaction sites for pollutants reacting with photocatalysts, O2 and photons on the air/water interface. Photodegradation results showed all three floatable hybrid photocatalysts exhibited enhanced photocatalytic efficiencies compared to the virgin photocatalysts. In short, the carrier can integrate excellent floating ability, environmental friendliness and full recycling with good stability, and it can greatly improve the photocatalytic efficiency of various powder semiconductor photocatalysts.

Long-term antibacterial composite via alginate aerogel sustained release of antibiotics and Cu used for bone tissue bacteria infection.

Bone related-bacterial diseases including wound infections and osteomyelitis (OM) remain a serious problem accompanied with amputation in most severe cases. In this work, we report an exceptional effective antibacterial alginate aerogel, which consists of tigecycline (TGC) and octahedral Cu crystal as an organo-inorganic synergy platform for antibacterial and local infection therapy applications. The alginate aerogel could greatly prolong the release of copper ions and maintain effective antibacterial concentration over 18 days. The result of in-vitro experiments demonstrated that the alginate aerogel has an exceptional effective function on antibacterial activity. Cytotoxicity tests indicated that the alginate aerogel has low biological toxicity (average cell viability >75%). These remarkable results suggested that the alginate aerogel exhibits great potential for the treatment of OM, and has a prosperous future of application in bone tissue engineering.

High Transferability of Homoeolog-Specific Markers between Bread Wheat and Newly Synthesized Hexaploid Wheat Lines.

Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum, 2n = 6x = 42, AABBDD) has a complex allohexaploid genome, which makes it difficult to differentiate between the homoeologous sequences and assign them to the chromosome A, B, or D subgenomes. The chromosome-based draft genome sequence of the 'Chinese Spring' common wheat cultivar enables the large-scale development of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based markers specific for homoeologs. Based on high-confidence 'Chinese Spring' genes with known functions, we developed 183 putative homoeolog-specific markers for chromosomes 4B and 7B. These markers were used in PCR assays for the 4B and 7B nullisomes and their euploid synthetic hexaploid wheat (SHW) line that was newly generated from a hybridization between Triticum turgidum (AABB) and the wild diploid species Aegilops tauschii (DD). Up to 64% of the markers for chromosomes 4B or 7B in the SHW background were confirmed to be homoeolog-specific. Thus, these markers were highly transferable between the 'Chinese Spring' bread wheat and SHW lines. Homoeolog-specific markers designed using genes with known functions may be useful for genetic investigations involving homoeologous chromosome tracking and homoeolog expression and interaction analyses.

Characterization of a novel y-type HMW-GS with eight cysteine residues from Triticum monococcum ssp. monococcum.

The composition and number of high-molecular-weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GSs) play important roles in determining the grain-processing quality of common wheat. The Glu-1Ay allele is silent in common wheat. In this study, an active y-type HMW-GS allele termed 1Ay8.2 (GenBank No. KP137569) was identified from Triticum monococcum L. ssp. monococcum (AmAm, 2n=2x=14), a species with a genome related to the A-genome of common wheat. Compared with previously reported active 1Ay subunits, this novel subunit contained an extra cysteine residue at position 103 of the amino acid sequence in the N-terminal region, in addition to the six cysteines in the N- and C-terminal regions found in most active 1Ay subunits and the one in the repetitive region that appears in only a few 1Ay alleles. This subunit was expressed in an amphiploid (AAAmAmBB, 2n=6x=42) between Triticum turgidum L. ssp. dicoccon and T. monococcum ssp. monococcum. This amphiploid could be used as a bridge to transfer 1Ay8.2 into common wheat cultivars. Replacing the silenced 1Ay in common wheat with the active 1Ay8.2 allele harboring an extra cysteine residue is expected to improve the quality by increasing the number of HMW-GSs and promoting the formation of covalent interactions through disulfide bonds with the extra cysteine residue.