ABSTRACT
Application of microbial agents is a novel strategy to improve the quality and health of plant, which can be used to increase zinc (Zn) uptake and alleviate Zn toxicity. Here, endophytic bacteria with Zn solubilizing and growth-promoting properties were isolated from hyperaccumulating ecotype (HE) of Sedum alfredii Hance and their effects on Zn absorption and accumulation of non-hyperaccumulating ecotype (NHE) were studied. The results showed that most endophytic bacteria of HE have good Zn solubilizing or growth-promoting properties. Under the condition of 20 µM ZnSO4, the biomass of NHE inoculated with SaPS1, SaEN2, SaPR2, SaBA2, SaBA3 was 2.8-3.2 times higher than that of non-inoculation control, and the Zn concentration of shoots was increased by 45.9, 89.0, 53.7, 77.5, and 42.6% after inoculation with SaPA1, SaP1, SaEN2, SaBA1, and SaBA2. Under the condition of 100 µM ZnSO4, inoculation with SaVA1, SaPS3, SaB1, SaPR1, and SaEN3 alleviated Zn stress and significantly reduced Zn concentration of shoots. Therefore, endophytic bacteria can be an effective means of improving plant Zn nutrition quality in the normal condition and benefit plant health in the stress environment.
In this study, endophytes with Zn solubilizing properties were systematically isolated from Zn hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii Hance. The aim is to identify endophyte resources with good promoting effect on plant growth and Zn uptake, and to provide scientific basis for the development of efficient biofortified agent.
ABSTRACT
The function labeling of enzymes has a wide range of application value in the medical field, industrial biology and other fields. Scientists define enzyme categories by enzyme commission (EC) numbers. At present, although there are some tools for enzyme function prediction, their effects have not reached the application level. To improve the precision of enzyme function prediction, we propose a parallel convolutional contrastive learning (PCCL) method to predict enzyme functions. First, we use the advanced protein language model ESM-2 to preprocess the protein sequences. Second, PCCL combines convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and contrastive learning to improve the prediction precision of multifunctional enzymes. Contrastive learning can make the model better deal with the problem of class imbalance. Finally, the deep learning framework is mainly composed of three parallel CNNs for fully extracting sample features. we compare PCCL with state-of-art enzyme function prediction methods based on three evaluation metrics. The performance of our model improves on both two test sets. Especially on the smaller test set, PCCL improves the AUC by 2.57%. The source code can be downloaded from https://github.com/biomg/PCCL.
ABSTRACT
Intercropping with hyperaccumulators can facilitate the safe utilization of cadmium-contaminated soil. However, the effectiveness of this approach is influenced by plant species and varieties, which necessitates research on optimal plant consortia. In this study, 8 tomato varieties (3 cherry tomatoes and 5 common large-fruit tomatoes) were intercropped with Sedum alfredii in a moderately Cd-contaminated vegetable field. The results showed that the Cd concentration in the fruits of common large-fruit tomato varieties under monoculture was 1.03-1.50â¯mg/kg, while that in the fruits of cherry tomato varieties was 0.67-0.71â¯mg/kg. After intercropping with S. alfredii, the fruit Cd concentrations of Hangza 501, Hangza 503, and Hangza 108 decreased by 16.42â¯%, 19.72â¯%, and 6.76â¯%, respectively, while those of the other varieties significantly increased, except for those of Hangza 8. In contrast, the shoot Cd concentration of cherry tomatoes was greater than that of large-fruit tomatoes under monoculture. Furthermore, a significant increase in the shoot Cd concentration was noted in the Hangza 501, Hangza 503 and Hangza 603 plants following intercropping. Additionally, intercropping with S. alfredii increased the concentration of soluble sugars in the fruits of Hangza 8, Hangza 501, Hangza 503 and Hangza 603 by 4.66â¯%, 17.91â¯%, 10.60â¯% and 17.88â¯%, respectively. Intercropping with tomatoes resulted in a decrease in both the biomass and Cd uptake of S. alfredii. Interestingly, the inhibitory effect on S. alfredii was less pronounced when intercropped with cherry tomatoes than when intercropped with large-fruit tomatoes. Among the intercropping treatments, S. alfredii exhibited the greatest total Cd accumulation (0.06â¯mg/plant) when intercropped with Hangza 503. In conclusion, the cherry tomato variety Hangza 503 was the most suitable for intercropping with S. alfredii and can be used safely for vegetable production and simultaneous phytoremediation of polluted soil. Our findings suggest that strategic selection of tomato varieties can optimize the effectiveness of "phytoextraction coupled with agro-safe production" technology for managing soil Cd concentrations.
Subject(s)
Biodegradation, Environmental , Cadmium , Fruit , Soil Pollutants , Solanum lycopersicum , Solanum lycopersicum/metabolism , Solanum lycopersicum/growth & development , Cadmium/metabolism , Cadmium/analysis , Soil Pollutants/analysis , Soil Pollutants/metabolism , Fruit/metabolism , Sedum/metabolism , Soil/chemistry , Plant Shoots/metabolism , Plant Shoots/growth & development , Agriculture/methodsABSTRACT
Nanowhisker-like Cu3(HHTP)2 composed of neat arrays grown on a copper foam is rationally designed and prepared using Cu(OH)2 nanowire arrays as a self-sacrifice template. Benefiting from the good conductivity of Cu3(HHTP)2 and an ordered array structure, the optimized Cu3(HHTP)2@CF-3 electrode exhibits high area capacity, good rate performance and cyclic stability.
ABSTRACT
Lung cancer is a common malignancy that is frequently associated with systemic metabolic disorders. Early detection is pivotal to survival improvement. Although blood biomarkers have been used in its early diagnosis, missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis still exist due to the heterogeneity of lung cancer. Integration of multiple biomarkers or trans-omics results can improve the accuracy and reliability for lung cancer diagnosis. As metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of lung cancer, metabolites, specifically lipids might be useful for lung cancer detection, yet systematic characterizations of metabolites in lung cancer are still incipient. The present study profiled the polar metabolome and lipidome in the plasma of lung cancer patients to construct an inclusive metabolomic atlas of lung cancer. A comprehensive analysis of lung cancer was also conducted combining metabolomics with clinical phenotypes. Furthermore, the differences in plasma lipid metabolites were compared and analyzed among different lung cancer subtypes. Alcohols, amides, and peptide metabolites were significantly increased in lung cancer, while carboxylic acids, hydrocarbons, and fatty acids were remarkably decreased. Lipid profiling revealed a significant increase in plasma levels of CER, PE, SM, and TAG in individuals with lung cancer as compared to those in healthy controls. Correlation analysis confirmed the association between a panel of metabolites and TAGs. Clinical trans-omics studies elucidated the complex correlations between lipidomic data and clinical phenotypes. The present study emphasized the clinical importance of lipidomics in lung cancer, which involves the correlation between metabolites and the expressions of other omics, ultimately influencing clinical phenotypes. This novel trans-omics network approach would facilitate the development of precision therapy for lung cancer.
Subject(s)
Lung Neoplasms , Metabolomics , Precision Medicine , Humans , Lung Neoplasms/blood , Lung Neoplasms/metabolism , Metabolomics/methods , Precision Medicine/methods , Biomarkers, Tumor/blood , Male , Middle Aged , Female , Lipidomics/methods , Phenotype , Metabolome , Aged , Lipids/bloodABSTRACT
Objective: This study investigated the impact of Aspergillus niger lysing polysaccharide monooxygenase (AnLPMO) on in vitro rumen microbial fermentation of rice straw. Methods: AnLPMO was heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. Fourier transform infrared spectrometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyzed the surface structure of rice straw after AnLPMO treatment. Two in vitro experiments, coupled with 16S high-throughput sequencing and qRT-PCR techniques, assessed the influence of AnLPMO on rumen microbial fermentation of rice straw. Results: AnLPMO exhibited peak activity at 40 °C and pH 6.5, with a preference for rice straw xylan hydrolysis, followed by Avicel. AnLPMO application led to the fractional removal of cellulose and hemicelluloses and a notable reduction in the levels of carbon elements and C-C groups present on the surface of rice straw. Compared to the control (no AnLPMO), supplementing AnLPMO at 1.1 U-2.0 U significantly enhanced in vitro digestibility of dry matter (IVDMD, P < 0.01), total gas production (P < 0.01), and concentrations of total volatile fatty acids (VFA, P < 0.01), acetate (P < 0.01), and ammonia-N (P < 0.01). Particularly, the 1.4 U AnLPMO group showed a 14.8% increase in IVDMD. In the second experiment, compared to deactivated AnLPMO (1.4 U), supplementing bioactive AnLPMO at 1.4 U increased IVDMD (P = 0.01), total gas production (P = 0.04), and concentrations of total VFA (P < 0.01), propionate (P < 0.01), and ammonia-N (P < 0.01), with a limited 9.6% increase in IVDMD. Supplementing AnLPMO stimulated the growth of ruminal bacterial taxa facilitating fiber degradation, including Proteobacteria, Spirochaetes, Succinivibrio, Rikenellaceae_RC9_Gut_Group, Prevotelaceae_UCG-003, Desulfovibrio, Fibrobacter succinogenes, Ruminococcus albus, R. flavefaciens, Prevotella bryantii, P. ruminicola, and Treponema bryantii. Conclusion: These findings highlight AnLPMO's potential as a feed additive for improving rice straw utilization in ruminant production.
ABSTRACT
Due to its wide application, deep reinforcement learning (DRL) has been extensively studied in the motion planning community in recent years. However, in the current DRL research, regardless of task completion, the state information of the agent will be reset afterward. This leads to a low sample utilization rate and hinders further explorations of the environment. Moreover, in the initial training stage, the agent has a weak learning ability in general, which affects the training efficiency in complex tasks. In this study, a new hierarchical reinforcement learning (HRL) framework dubbed hierarchical learning based on game playing with state relay (HGR) is proposed. In particular, we introduce an auxiliary penalty to regulate task difficulty, and one training mechanism, the state relay mechanism, is designed. The relay mechanism can make full use of the intermediate states of the agent and expand the environment exploration of low-level policy. Our algorithm can improve the sample utilization rate, reduce the sparse reward problem, and thereby enhance the training performance in complex environments. Simulation tests are carried out on two public experiment platforms, i.e., MazeBase and MuJoCo, to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. The results show that HGR significantly benefits the reinforcement learning (RL) area.
ABSTRACT
Genome-wide association studies have shown that common genetic variants associated with complex diseases are mostly located in non-coding regions, which may not be causal. In addition, the limited number of validated non-coding functional variants makes it difficult to develop an effective supervised learning model. Therefore, improving the accuracy of predicting non-coding causal variants has become critical. This study aims to build a transfer learning-based machine learning method for predicting regulatory variants to overcome the problem of limited sample size. This paper presents a supervised learning method transfer support vector machine (TSVM) for massively parallel reporter assays (MPRA) validated regulatory variants prediction. First, uses a convolutional neural network to extract features with transfer learning. Second, the extracted features are selected by random forest method. Third, the selected features are used to train support vector machine for classification. We performed scale sensitivity experiments on the MPRA dataset and validated the effectiveness of transfer learning. The model achieves the Mcc of 0.326 and the AUC of 0.720, which are higher than the state-of-the-art method.
Subject(s)
Computational Biology , Support Vector Machine , Computational Biology/methods , Humans , Genetic Variation/genetics , Algorithms , Genome-Wide Association Study/methodsABSTRACT
Ischemic stroke is currently the most common type of stroke, and the key pathological link is cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI), while the key factor leading to apoptosis and necrosis of ischemic nerve cells is calcium overload. Current studies have confirmed that acupuncture therapy has a good modulating effect on calcium homeostasis and can reduce cerebral ischemia-reperfusion induced damage of neuronal cells by inhibiting calcium overload. After reviewing the relevant literature published in the past 15 years, we find that acupuncture plays a role in regulating the pathological mechanism of calcium overload after CIRI by inhibiting the opening of connexin 43 hemichannels, regulating the intracellular free calcium ion concentration, suppressing the expression of calmodulin, and blocking the function of L-type voltage-gated calcium channels, thereby inhibiting calcium overload, regulating calcium homeostasis and antagonizing neuronal damage resulted from cerebral ischemia-reperfusion, which may provide ideas for future research.
Subject(s)
Acupuncture Therapy , Acupuncture , Brain Ischemia , Reperfusion Injury , Humans , Calcium/metabolism , Reperfusion Injury/genetics , Reperfusion Injury/therapy , Reperfusion Injury/metabolism , Brain Ischemia/genetics , Brain Ischemia/therapy , Brain Ischemia/metabolism , Cerebral InfarctionABSTRACT
Decision-making is a basic component of agents' (e.g., intelligent sensors) behaviors, in which one's cognition plays a crucial role in the process and outcome. Extensive games, a class of interactive decision-making scenarios, have been studied in diverse fields. Recently, a model of extensive games was proposed in which agent cognition of the structure of the underlying game and the quality of the game situations are encoded by artificial neural networks. This model refines the classic model of extensive games, and the corresponding equilibrium concept-cognitive perfect equilibrium (CPE)-differs from the classic subgame perfect equilibrium, since CPE takes agent cognition into consideration. However, this model neglects the consideration that game-playing processes are greatly affected by agents' cognition of their opponents. To this end, in this work, we go one step further by proposing a framework in which agents' cognition of their opponents is incorporated. A method is presented for evaluating opponents' cognition about the game being played, and thus, an algorithm designed for playing such games is analyzed. The resulting equilibrium concept is defined as adversarial cognition equilibrium (ACE). By means of a running example, we demonstrate that the ACE is more realistic than the CPE, since it involves learning about opponents' cognition. Further results are presented regarding the computational complexity, soundness, and completeness of the game-solving algorithm and the existence of the equilibrium solution. This model suggests the possibility of enhancing an agent's strategic ability by evaluating opponents' cognition.
Subject(s)
Cognition , Learning , AlgorithmsABSTRACT
Intercropping crops with hyperaccumulators is a proven model for coupling crop safety production and soil heavy metal remediation. And both crop genotypes and soil properties might have great impacts on the effect of intercropping. Therefore, a greenhouse pot experiment was designed to investigate the effects of intercropping different tomato varieties with the cadmium (Cd) hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii Hance (S. alfredii Hance) on different soils. The results showed that intercropping promoted Cd uptake by S. alfredii Hance and reduced soil total Cd concentration. There was no significant effect of intercropping on tomato yield and Cd concentration. Different tomato varieties had different effects on tomato yield and Cd concentration. The yield of cherry tomato was 1.04 times higher than that of common large fruit tomato, while the Cd concentration in all parts was lower than that of common large fruit tomato. Different typical zonal soils had different effects on tomato production and soil remediation. And among the four studied soils, tomatoes grown on ZJ soil had the highest yields and lowest fruit Cd concentration, making them more suitable for remediation coupled with safety production. This study provided a comprehensive analysis of tomato production benefits and soil remediation effects, which could be useful as a guide in vegetable safety production coupled with soil remediation practices in the Cd-contaminated greenhouse.
Subject(s)
Sedum , Soil Pollutants , Solanum lycopersicum , Cadmium/analysis , Soil , Soil Pollutants/analysis , Biodegradation, Environmental , Crop ProductionABSTRACT
The development of injectable self-healing adhesive hydrogel dressings with excellent bactericidal activity and wound healing ability is urgently in demand for combating biofilm infections. Herein, a multifunctional hydrogel (QP/QT-MB) with near-infrared (NIR) light-activated mild photothermal/gaseous antimicrobial activity was developed based on the dynamic reversible borate bonds and hydrogen bonds crosslinking between quaternization chitosan (QCS) derivatives alternatively containing phenylboronic acid and catechol-like moieties in conjunction with the in situ encapsulation of BNN6-loaded mesoporous polydopamine (MPDA@BNN6 NPs). Given the dynamic reversible cross-linking feature, the versatile hybrid hydrogel exhibited injectability, flexibility, and rapid self-healing ability. The numerous phenylboronic acid and catechol-like moieties on the QCS backbone confer the hydrogel with specific bacterial affinity, desirable tissue adhesion, and antioxidant stress ability that enhance bactericidal activity and facilitate the regeneration of infection wounds. Under NIR irradiation, the QP/QT-MB hydrogels exhibited a desirable mild photothermal effect and NIR-activity controllable NO delivery, combined with the endogenous contact antimicrobial activity of hydrogel, contributing jointly to induce dispersal of biofilms and disruption of the bacterial plasma membranes, ultimately leading to bacteria inactivation and biofilm elimination. In vivo experiments demonstrated that the fabricated QP/QT-MB hydrogel platform was capable of inducing efficient eradication of the S. aureus biofilm in a severely infected wound model and accelerating infected wound repair by promoting collagen deposition, angiogenesis, and suppressing inflammatory responses. Additionally, the QP/QT-MB hydrogel demonstrated excellent biocompatibility in vitro and in vivo. Collectively, the hydrogel (QP/QT-MB) reveals great potential application prospects as a promising alternative in the field of biofilm-associated infection treatment.
Subject(s)
Anti-Infective Agents , Chitosan , Hydrogels/pharmacology , Delayed-Action Preparations , Nitric Oxide , Staphylococcus aureus , Wound Healing , Biofilms , CatecholsABSTRACT
The minimum vertex cover (MVC) problem is a canonical NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem aiming to find the smallest set of vertices such that every edge has at least one endpoint in the set. This problem has extensive applications in cybersecurity, scheduling, and monitoring link failures in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). Numerous local search algorithms have been proposed to obtain "good" vertex coverage. However, due to the NP-hard nature, it is challenging to efficiently solve the MVC problem, especially on large graphs. In this paper, we propose an efficient local search algorithm for MVC called TIVC, which is based on two main ideas: a 3-improvements (TI) framework with a tiny perturbation and edge selection strategy. We conducted experiments on real-world large instances of a massive graph benchmark. Compared with three state-of-the-art MVC algorithms, TIVC shows superior performance in accuracy and possesses a remarkable ability to identify significantly smaller vertex covers on many graphs.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) play a vital role in safeguarding the rights and interests of both research participants and researchers. However, China initiated the establishment of its own IRB system relatively late in comparison to international standards. Despite commendable progress, there is a pressing need to strengthen the organizational capacity building of Chinese IRBs. Hence, this study aims to analyze the key factors driving the enhancement of organizational capacity within these committees. METHOD: The cross-sectional survey for this research was conducted from July 2020 to January 2022. Following the statistical grouping based on the "2020 China Health Statistical Yearbook", a systematic investigation of IRBs in various provinces of China was carried out. In-depth interviews and questionnaire surveys were conducted with the chairpersons and administrative executives (or secretaries) of highly cooperative IRBs. Subsequently, data were collected from 107 IRBs. Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) was employed as the method to analyze the factors influencing the organizational capacity of medical ethics committees and explore the diverse combinations of these factors. RESULTS: Through a singular necessary condition analysis, the variable "protection of rights and interests" emerges as a critical factor contributing to the robust construction of Institutional Review Boards Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). Conversely, the variables of "lack of member ability, absence of review process, and deficiency in the supervision mechanism" collectively constitute a sufficient condition leading to weaker IRB construction. The state analysis uncovers three interpretation modes: member ability-oriented (M1), system process-oriented mode (M2), and resource system-oriented mode (M3). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study are effectively explicable using the "Triangular Force" model proposed for the hypothesis of IRBs' organizational capacity, which provides a solid foundation for the development of organizational capabilities in IRBs. To enhance the organizational capacity of IRBs in China, it is imperative to elevate the competence of committee members and strengthen team development. This can be achieved by establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework and refining procedural protocols. Moreover, clarifying the organizational structure and optimizing resource allocation are essential steps in bolstering the overall organizational capabilities of these committees.
Subject(s)
Capacity Building , Ethics Committees, Research , Humans , Cross-Sectional Studies , Surveys and Questionnaires , Research PersonnelABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) are adult stem cells with multi-directional differentiation potential derived from ectoderm. Vitro experiments have shown that adding cytokines can help DPSCs to be transformed from multipotent stem cells to osteoblasts. TGF-ß has been proved to have an effect on the proliferation and mineralization of bone tissue, but its effect on the osteogenesis and proliferation of dental pulp stem cells is still uncertain. We aim to determine the effect of TGF-ß on the osteogenesis and proliferation of dental pulp stem cells. METHODS: We have identified studies from the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, Embase, and China national knowledge infrastructure (CNKI) for studies interested in TGF-ß and proliferation and differentiation of dental pulp stem cells in the following indicators: A490 (an index for evaluating cell proliferation), bone sialoprotein (BSP), Col plasmid-1 (Col-1), osteocalcin (OCN), runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx-2); and the number of mineralized nodules. Any language restrictions were rejected. Furthermore, we drew a forest plot for each outcome. We conducted a sensitivity analysis, data analysis, heterogeneity, and publication bias test. We evaluate the quality of each study under the guidance of Cochrane's tool for quality assessment. RESULTS: The pooled data showed that TGF-ß could promote the proliferation and ossification of dental pulp stem cells. All the included results support this conclusion except for the number of mineralized nodules: TGF-ß increases the A490 index (SMD 3.11, 95% CI [0.54-5.69]), promotes the production of BSP (SMD 3.11, 95% CI [0.81-6.77]), promotes the expression of Col-1 (SMD 4.71, 95% CI [1.25-8.16]) and Runx-2 (SMD 3.37, 95% CI [- 0.63 to 7.36]), increases the content of OCN (SMD 4.32, 95% CI [1.20-7.44]) in dental pulp, and has no significant effect on the number of mineralized nodules (SMD 3.87, 95% CI [- 1.76 to 9.51]) in dental pulp stem cells. CONCLUSIONS: TGF-ß promotes the proliferation and osteogenesis of dental pulp stem cells.
Subject(s)
Osteogenesis , Transforming Growth Factor beta , Humans , Cell Differentiation , Cell Proliferation , Cells, Cultured , Dental Pulp , Stem CellsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Claudin18.2 (CLDN18.2) is a tight junction protein that has been identified as a clinically proven target in gastric cancer. Stimulation of 4-1BB with agonistic antibodies is also a promising strategy for immunotherapy and 4-1BB+ T cells were reported to be present within the tumor microenvironment of patients with gastric cancer. However, hepatotoxicity-mediated by 4-1BB activation was observed in clinical trials of agonistic anti-4-1BB monoclonal antibodies. METHODS: To specifically activate the 4-1BB+ T cells in tumor and avoid the on-target liver toxicity, we developed a novel CLDN18.2×4-1BB bispecific antibody (termed 'givastomig' or 'ABL111'; also known as TJ-CD4B or TJ033721) that was designed to activate 4-1BB signaling in a CLDN18.2 engagement-dependent manner. RESULTS: 4-1BB+ T cells were observed to be coexisted with CLDN18.2+ tumor cells in proximity by multiplex immunohistochemical staining of tumor tissues from patients with gastric cancer (n=60). Givastomig/ABL111 could bind to cell lines expressing various levels of CLDN18.2 with a high affinity and induce 4-1BB activation in vitro only in the context of CLDN18.2 binding. The magnitude of T-cell activation by givastomig/ABL111 treatment was closely correlated with the CLDN18.2 expression level of tumor cells from gastric cancer patient-derived xenograft model. Mechanistically, givastomig/ABL111 treatment could upregulate the expression of a panel of pro-inflammatory and interferon-γ-responsive genes in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells when co-cultured with CLDN18.2+ tumor cells. Furthermore, in humanized 4-1BB transgenic mice inoculated with human CLDN18.2-expressing tumor cells, givastomig/ABL111 induced a localized immune activation in tumor as evident by the increased ratio of CD8+/regulatory T cell, leading to the superior antitumor activity and long-lasting memory response against tumor rechallenge. Givastomig/ABL111 was well tolerated, with no systemic immune response and hepatotoxicity in monkeys. CONCLUSIONS: Givastomig/ABL111 is a novel CLDN18.2×4-1BB bispecific antibody which has the potential to treat patients with gastric cancer with a wide range of CLDN18.2 expression level through the restricted activation of 4-1BB+ T cells in tumor microenvironment to avoid the risk of liver toxicity and systemic immune response.
Subject(s)
Antibodies, Bispecific , Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury , Stomach Neoplasms , Mice , Animals , Humans , Stomach Neoplasms/drug therapy , Leukocytes, Mononuclear , Antibodies, Bispecific/pharmacology , Antibodies, Bispecific/therapeutic use , Lymphocyte Activation , Mice, Transgenic , Tumor Microenvironment , ClaudinsSubject(s)
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell , Head and Neck Neoplasms , Mouth Neoplasms , RNA, Long Noncoding , Humans , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/drug therapy , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/genetics , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/pathology , Cell Line, Tumor , Cell Movement/genetics , Cell Proliferation/genetics , Cisplatin/pharmacology , Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic , Head and Neck Neoplasms/genetics , Mouth Neoplasms/drug therapy , Mouth Neoplasms/genetics , RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics , Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck/geneticsABSTRACT
Chromium (Cr) is a major pollutant affecting the environment and human health and microbial remediation is considered to be the most promising technology for the restoration of the heavily metal-polluted soil. However, the difference between rhizosphere and endophytic bacteria on the potential of crop safety production in Cr-contaminated farmland is not clearly elucidated. Therefore, eight Cr-tolerant endophytic strains of three species: Serratia (SR-1~2), Lysinebacillus (LB-1~5) and Pseudomonas (PA-1) were isolated from rice and maize. Additionally, one Cr-tolerant strain of Alcaligenes faecalis (AF-1) was isolated from the rhizosphere of maize. A randomized group pot experiment with heavily Cr-contaminated (a total Cr concentration of 1020.18 mg kg-1) paddy clay soil was conducted and the effects of different bacteria on plant growth, absorption and accumulation of Cr in lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. Hort) were compared. The results show that: (i) the addition of SR-2, PA-1 and LB-5 could promote the accumulation of plant fresh weight by 10.3%, 13.5% and 14.2%, respectively; (ii) most of the bacteria could significantly increase the activities of rhizosphere soil catalase and sucrase, among which LB-1 promotes catalase activity by 224.60% and PA-1 increases sucrase activity by 247%; (iii) AF-1, SR-1, LB-1, SR-2, LB-2, LB-3, LB-4 and LB-5 strains could significantly decrease shoot the Cr concentration by 19.2-83.6%. The results reveal that Cr-tolerant bacteria have good potential to reduce shoot Cr concentration at the heavily contaminated soil and endophytic bacteria have the same or even better effects than rhizosphere bacteria; this suggests that bacteria in plants are more ecological friendly than bacteria in soil, thus aiming to safely produce crops in Cr-polluted farmland and alleviate Cr contamination from the food chain.