Effects of Ratoon Rice Cropping Patterns on Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Yield in Double-Season Rice Regions.

The ratoon rice cropping pattern is an alternative to the double-season rice cropping pattern in central China due to its comparable annual yield and relatively lower cost and labor requirements. However, the impact of the ratoon rice cropping pattern on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and yields in the double-season rice region requires further investigation. Here, we compared two cropping patterns, fallow-double season rice (DR) and fallow-ratoon rice (RR), by using two early-season rice varieties (ZJZ17, LY287) and two late-season rice varieties (WY103, TY390) for DR, and two ratoon rice varieties (YLY911, LY6326) for RR. The six varieties constituted four treatments, including DR1 (ZJZ17 + WY103), DR2 (LY287 + TY390), RR1 (YLY911), and RR2 (LY6326). The experimental results showed that conversion from DR to RR cropping pattern significantly altered the GHG emissions, global warming potential (GWP), and GWP per unit yield (yield-scaled GWP). Compared with DR, the RR cropping pattern significantly increased cumulative methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 65.73%, 30.56%, and 47.13%, respectively, in the first cropping season. Conversely, in the second cropping season, the RR cropping pattern effectively reduced cumulative CH4, N2O, and CO2 emissions by 79.86%, 27.18%, and 30.31%, respectively. RR led to significantly lower annual cumulative CH4 emissions, but no significant difference in cumulative annual N2O and CO2 emissions compared with DR. In total, the RR cropping pattern reduced the annual GWP by 7.38% and the annual yield-scaled GWP by 2.48% when compared to the DR cropping pattern. Rice variety also showed certain effects on the yields and GHG emissions in different RR cropping patterns. Compared with RR1, RR2 significantly increased annual yield while decreasing annual GWP and annual yield-scaled GWP. In conclusion, the LY6326 RR cropping pattern may be a highly promising strategy to simultaneously reduce GWP and maintain high grain yield in double-season rice regions in central China.

The relationship between the gut microbiota and oxidative stress in the cognitive function of schizophrenia: A pilot study in China.

Cognitive impairment is a core symptom of schizophrenia. The gut microbiota (GM) and oxidative stress may play important roles in the pathophysiological mechanisms of cognitive impairment. This study aimed to explore the relationship between GM and oxidative stress in the cognitive function of schizophrenia. GM obtained by 16S RNA sequencing and serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels from schizophrenia patients (N = 68) and healthy controls (HCs, N = 72) were analyzed. All psychiatric symptoms were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Cognitive function was assessed using the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB). Correlation analysis was used to explore the relationship between GM, SOD, and cognitive function. Machine learning models were used to identify potential biomarkers. Compared to HCs, the relative abundances of Collinsella, undefined Ruminococcus, Lactobacillus, Eubacterium, Mogibacterium, Desulfovibrio, Bulleidia, Succinivibrio, Corynebacterium, and Atopobium were higher in patients with schizophrenia, but Faecalibacterium, Anaerostipes, Turicibacter, and Ruminococcus were lower. In patients with schizophrenia, the positive factor, general factor, and total score of MCCB positively correlated with Lactobacillus, Collinsella, and Lactobacillus, respectively; SOD negatively correlated with Eubacterium, Collinsella, Lactobacillus, Corynebacterium, Bulleidia, Mogibacterium, and Succinivibrio, but positively correlated with Faecalibacterium, Ruminococcus, and MCCB verbal learning index scores; Faecalibacterium and Turicibacter were positively correlated with MCCB visual learning index scores and speed of processing index scores, respectively. Our findings revealed a correlation between SOD and GM and confirmed that cognitive dysfunction in patients with schizophrenia involves abnormal SOD levels and GM changes.

Relationships among the gut microbiome, brain networks, and symptom severity in schizophrenia patients: A mediation analysis.

The microbiome-gut-brain axis (MGBA) plays a critical role in schizophrenia (SZ). However, the underlying mechanisms of the interactions among the gut microbiome, brain networks, and symptom severity in SZ patients remain largely unknown. Fecal samples, structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data, and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores were collected from 38 SZ patients and 38 normal controls, respectively. The data of 16S rRNA gene sequencing were used to analyze the abundance of gut microbiome and the analysis of human brain networks was applied to compute the nodal properties of 90 brain regions. A total of 1,691,280 mediation models were constructed based on 261 gut bacterial, 810 nodal properties, and 4 PANSS scores in SZ patients. A strong correlation between the gut microbiome and brain networks (r = 0.89, false discovery rate (FDR) -corrected p < 0.05) was identified. Importantly, the PANSS scores were linearly correlated with both the gut microbiome (r = 0.5, FDR-corrected p < 0.05) and brain networks (r = 0.59, FDR-corrected p < 0.05). The abundance of genus Sellimonas significantly affected the PANSS negative scores of SZ patients via the betweenness centrality of white matter networks in the inferior frontal gyrus and amygdala. Moreover, 19 significant mediation models demonstrated that the nodal properties of 7 brain regions, predominately from the systems of visual, language, and control of action, showed significant mediating effects on the PANSS scores with the gut microbiome as mediators. Together, our findings indicated the tripartite relationships among the gut microbiome, brain networks, and PANSS scores and suggested their potential role in the neuropathology of SZ.

Genome-wide characterization of SOS1 gene family in potato (Solanum tuberosum) and expression analyses under salt and hormone stress.

Salt Overly Sensitive 1 (SOS1) is one of the members of the Salt Overly Sensitive (SOS) signaling pathway and plays critical salt tolerance determinant in plants, while the characterization of the SOS1 family in potato (Solanum tuberosum) is lacking. In this study, 37 StSOS1s were identified and found to be unevenly distributed across 10 chromosomes, with most of them located on the plasma membrane. Promoter analysis revealed that the majority of these StSOS1 genes contain abundant cis-elements involved in various abiotic stress responses. Tissue specific expression showed that 21 of the 37 StSOS1s were widely expressed in various tissues or organs of the potato. Molecular interaction network analysis suggests that 25 StSOS1s may interact with other proteins involved in potassium ion transmembrane transport, response to salt stress, and cellular processes. In addition, collinearity analysis showed that 17, 8, 1 and 5 of orthologous StSOS1 genes were paired with those in tomato, pepper, tobacco, and Arabidopsis, respectively. Furthermore, RT-qPCR results revealed that the expression of StSOS1s were significant modulated by various abiotic stresses, in particular salt and abscisic acid stress. Furthermore, subcellular localization in Nicotiana benthamiana suggested that StSOS1-13 was located on the plasma membrane. These results extend the comprehensive overview of the StSOS1 gene family and set the stage for further analysis of the function of genes in SOS and hormone signaling pathways.

Corrigendum: Discriminative analysis of schizophrenia patients using graph convolutional networks: a combined multimodal MRI and connectomics analysis.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1140801.].

Conversion from double-season rice to ratoon rice paddy fields reduces carbon footprint and enhances net ecosystem economic benefit.

Ratoon rice (RR) system is an alternative to the double-season rice (DR) system in central China due to its high annual yield and relatively lower cost and labor requirement. However, the effect of conversion from DR to RR on the carbon footprint (CF) and net ecosystem economic benefit (NEEB) remains largely unknown. Here, we elucidated the effect by using two early-season rice varieties (ZJZ17, LY287) and two late-season rice varieties (WY103, TY390) for the DR system, and two RR varieties (YLY911, LY6326) for the RR system. The six varieties constituted four cropping systems, including DR1 (ZJZ17 + WY103), DR2 (LY287 + TY390), RR1 (YLY911) and RR2 (LY6326). The two-year experiment demonstrated that RR had 27.37% lower annual CF than DR, which could be attributed to the significantly lower annual CF (by 87.27%) of ratoon crop in RR relative to that of the late-season rice in DR. Direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contributed the most to annual CF in both systems, accounting for 43.28% and 35.39% in DR and RR, respectively. Furthermore, conversion from DR to RR system significantly increased annual NEEB by 30.95%. This increase could be attributed to the 20.25% higher annual grain yield of main crop in RR relative to early-season rice in DR, and 75.32% and 87.27% lower annual costs for agricultural inputs and CF of ratoon crop than late-season rice in DR, respectively. Rice variety also showed certain effects on the yields and GHG emissions in different RR systems. Compared with RR1, RR2 significantly increased annual yield and annual NEEB, while decreased annual CF and annual yield-scaled CF (CFy). These findings suggest that the conversion of the DR system to LY6326 RR system may be a highly promising strategy to simultaneously reduce CF, promote NEEB and maintain high grain yield in central China.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of the efficacy and safety of vibegron vs antimuscarinic monotherapy for overactive bladder.

BACKGROUND: Vibegron is a new ß3-adrenergic receptor agonist which has been demonstrated for the treatment of overactive bladder (OAB). We carried out meta-analysis to evaluate the efficiency of vibegron vs antimuscarinic monotherapy for treating OAB. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of Vibegron vs antimuscarinic monotherapy for OAB were searched systematically by using EMBASE, MEDLINE, and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register. The RevMan version 5.3.0. was used to analysis the data. RESULTS: Three RCTs involving a total of 1751 patients were studied in the Systematic review and Meta-analysis. Efficacy end points: the mean number of micturitions episodes/d (P = .16); the mean number of urgency episodes/d (P = .05); mean number of urgency incontinence episodes/d (P = .11) and mean number of incontinence episodes/d (P = .14) indicated that vibegron and antimuscarinic had no significant differences in terms of OAB treatment. Mean volume voided/micturition showed a distinct difference in the two groups (P = .009). With regard to dry mouth and drug related treatment-emergent adverse event (TEAE), vibegron showed better tolerance than antimuscarinic. Serious adverse event (SAE) and discontinuations due to adverse event (AE) did not show a significant difference between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: The therapeutic effect of vibegron is similar to that of antimuscarinic, but vibegron does not increase the risk of AE.

The efficacy and safety of mirabegron on overactive bladder induced by benign prostatic hyperplasia in men receiving tamsulosin therapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: We conducted a meta-analysis to assess the efficacy and safety of mirabegron on overactive bladder (OAB) induced by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in men receiving tamsulosin therapy. METHODS: We performed the analysis by using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. The databases including MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register were retrieved to get information regarding randomized controlled trials of mirabegron on OAB induced by BPH in men receiving tamsulosin therapy. We also searched the references of included literatures. RESULTS: Three randomized controlled trials containing a total of 1317 BPH patients were included in the analysis. Co-primary efficacy end points: the mean number of micturitions per day [the mean difference (MD) = -0.27, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.46 to -0.09, P = .004], the urgency episodes per day (the MD = -0.50, 95% CI: -0.77 to -0.22, P = .0004), the total OAB symptom score (the MD = -0.69, 95% CI: -1.00 to -0.38, P < .0001), and mean volume voided (the MD = 10.76, 95% CI: 4.87-16.64, P = .0003) indicated that mirabegron was effective in treating OAB induced by BPH in men receiving tamsulosin therapy. Safety assessments that included treatment-emergent adverse events (odds ratio = 0.88, 95% CI: 0.68-1.13, P = .31) indicated that mirabegron was well tolerated with the exception of post-void residual urine volume (MD = 12.02, 95% CI: 6.01-18.04, P < .0001). CONCLUSIONS: This analysis demonstrates that mirabegron is an effective and safe treatment for OAB symptoms induced by BPH in men receiving tamsulosin therapy with a low occurrence of side effects. Besides, we should be aware that the administration of mirabegron might have the risk of increasing post-void residual urine volume.

Research on quantitative measurement method of articular cartilage thickness change based on MR image.

In order to study the quantitative measurement method of articular cartilage thickness change based on MR image, 140 patients with no knee joint symptoms and 17 patients with knee joint damage were studied. FLASH, SE and FISP 3 sequences were scanned for all normal knee joints to determine the articular cartilage thickness. 17 patients with knee joint damage were followed up for six months. The thickness of their femoral condyle and femoral trochlea cartilage was measured by FLASH sequence and thickness changes are recorded. The results show that the thickness distribution of normal knee articular cartilage in different parts is not equal, and the thickness of articular cartilage will be gradually thinner in different ages; MR image technique can observe the change of articular cartilage thickness in patients with knee joint damage, reflecting the recovery status of the patient's condition. The results of quantitative measurement of changes in articular cartilage thickness based on MR images are presented herein, and the results are as expected. Experimental data were provided for the clinical treatment of acute knee injury and osteoarthritis. Although there are still some shortcomings in the research process, the research results still provide some reference and guidance for the future exploration of the use of MR images to monitor the condition of arthritis, so this study is a significant research topic.

TRPV1 Induced Apoptosis of Colorectal Cancer Cells by Activating Calcineurin-NFAT2-p53 Signaling Pathway.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: TRPV1 is a nonselective Ca2+ channel which has recently been observed in many cancers, while its effect on cell proliferation, apoptosis, metabolism, and cancer development in colorectal cancer (CRC) is still unclear. In this study, we hypothesized that TRPV1 is a tumor suppressor in CRC development as well as the underlying mechanism. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry assay was applied to detect the expression of TRPV1 protein in CRC tissues. HCT116 cell proliferation and apoptosis were measured by CCK-8 and flow cytometry, respectively. Cellular Ca2+ concentration was measured by Fluo-4/AM-based flow cytometer. Apoptosis-related proteins were measured by Western blotting. RESULTS: In this study, we found that TRPV1 expression was significantly decreased in CRC tissues, compared with CRC-adjacent tissues and normal tissues, respectively. Then, we found that the TRVP1 agonist capsaicin treatment inhibited CRC growth and induced apoptosis by activating P53. Subsequent mechanistic study revealed that the TRPV1 induced cytosolic Ca2+ influx to regulate cell apoptosis and p53 activation through calcineurin. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that TRPV1 served as a tumor suppressor in CRC and contributed to the development of novel therapy of CRC.

Qip gene in Fusarium oxysporum is required for normal hyphae morphology and virulence.

Ribonucleic acid (RNA)-silencing mechanisms exist in many eukaryotes to regulate a variety of biological processes. The known molecular components are related to Dicers, Argonautes and RNA-dependent RNA polymerases. Previous biochemical studies have also suggested that Qip, with an exonuclease domain, facilitates the conversion of duplex small interfering RNAs into single strands. In our study, the Qip gene in Fusarium oxysporum was disrupted using homologous recombination technology. The deletion of the Qip gene resulted in a decrease in colony growth rates but increased the number of branches. Additionally, the ΔQip mutant had a reduced pathogenicity in cabbage. Our results show Qip gene in F. oxysporum is required for normal hyphae morphology and virulence. The mutant will be useful for elucidating the relationship between the RNA-silencing mechanism and hyphal growth and development in F. oxysporum.

LIN28B promotes colon cancer migration and recurrence.

LIN28B is involved in "stemness" and tumourigenesis by negatively regulating the maturation of let-7 microRNA family members. In this study, we showed that LIN28B expression promotes migration and recurrence of colon cancer. Immunohistochemistry and reverse-transcription polymerase chain reactions were performed to detect LIN28B expression in colon cancer tissue microarrays, paraffin-embedded surgical resected tissues and cancer cells. Loss-of-function, migration and proliferation analyses were performed to delineate the potential roles of LIN28B in colon cancer. LIN28B was upregulated in colon cancer tissue compared to normal mucosa, and its overexpression correlated with reduced patient survival and increased tumour recurrence. LIN28B suppression inhibited the migration of SW480 colon cancer cells and facilitated the cytotoxicity induced by oxaliplatin in SW480 and HCT116 colon cancer cells. In conclusion, LIN28B overexpression contributes to colon tumourigenesis, and LIN28B may serve as a diagnostic tool and therapeutic target for colon cancer.

A high efficiency gene disruption strategy using a positive-negative split selection marker and electroporation for Fusarium oxysporum.

The Fusarium oxysporum species complex consists of fungal pathogens that cause serial vascular wilt disease on more than 100 cultivated species throughout the world. Gene function analysis is rapidly becoming more and more important as the whole-genome sequences of various F. oxysporum strains are being completed. Gene-disruption techniques are a common molecular tool for studying gene function, yet are often a limiting step in gene function identification. In this study we have developed a F. oxysporum high-efficiency gene-disruption strategy based on split-marker homologous recombination cassettes with dual selection and electroporation transformation. The method was efficiently used to delete three RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) genes. The gene-disruption cassettes of three genes can be constructed simultaneously within a short time using this technique. The optimal condition for electroporation is 10µF capacitance, 300Ω resistance, 4kV/cm field strength, with 1µg of DNA (gene-disruption cassettes). Under these optimal conditions, we were able to obtain 95 transformants per µg DNA. And after positive-negative selection, the transformants were efficiently screened by PCR, screening efficiency averaged 85%: 90% (RdRP1), 85% (RdRP2) and 77% (RdRP3). This gene-disruption strategy should pave the way for high throughout genetic analysis in F. oxysporum.

[Purification of oleuropein by sephadex LH-20 column].

OBJECTIVE: To purify the oleuropein crude extracts by sephadex LH-20 column chromatograph. METHODS: This experiment used fast protein chromatography system (AKTA FPLC) produced by Amersham, Sweden. The chromatography column (20 mm x 300 mm) was matched with protein purification instrument. Sephadex LH-20 was used in the Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography columns. The mobile phase was 50% ethanol with a flow velocity of 1.0 mL per minute and the detection wavelength was 254 nm. The content of oleuropein was determined by HPLC. RESULTS: The purity of oleuropein was 82.9% after passing the column twice when the sample volume was 2 mL. CONCLUSION: Sephadex LH-20 can be re-used and the regeneration is convenient, it also provides a reference for the production of oleuropein.