A DIRIGENT Gene GmDIR26 Regulates Pod Dehiscence in Soybean.

Pod dehiscence brings much loss for modern agricultural production, and multiple pod dehiscence components have been identified in many plant species. However, the pod dehiscence regulation factors in soybean are limited. In this study, we investigate the function of GmDIR26, a close homologues gene of pod dehiscence genes GmPdh1, PvPdh1, and CaPdh1, in the regulation of pod dehiscence in soybean. The secondary and tertiary structure analysis reveals that GmDIR26 protein has a similar structure with GmPdh1, PvPdh1, and CaPdh1 proteins. Synteny analysis of soybean and chickpea genomes shows that the genomic region surrounding GmDIR26 and CaPdh1 might be evolved from the same ancestor, and these two genes might have similar function. GmDIR26 shows an increased expression pattern during pod development and reaches a peak at beginning seed stage. Meanwhile, GmDIR26 exhibits high expression levels in dorsal suture and pod wall, but low expression pattern in ventral suture. In addition, GmDIR26 shows higher expression levels in pod dehiscence genotype than that in pod indehiscence accessions. Overexpression of GmDIR26 in soybean increases pod dehiscence in transgenic plants, of which the lignin layer in inner sclerenchyma pods is thicker and looser. The expression levels of several pod dehiscence genes are altered. Our study provides important information for further modification of pod dehiscence resistance soybean and characterization of soybean pod dehiscence regulation network.

The correlation between modifications to corneal topography and changes in retinal vascular density and retinal thickness in myopic children after undergoing orthokeratology.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the relationship among changes in corneal topography, retinal vascular density, and retinal thickness in myopic children who underwent orthokeratology for 3 months. Method: Thirty children with myopia wore orthokeratology lenses for 3 months. Using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA), the retina was imaged as 6 × 6 mm en-face images at baseline and 3 months after orthokeratology. Cornea data was acquired by topography and analyzed by customer MATLAB software. The cornea was divided into 3 zones and 9 sectors. The relative corneal refractive power shift (RCRPS) was used in this study. Changes in retinal vascular density (RVDC) and retinal thickness change (RTC) were associated with RCRPS by using spearman test. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Result: A significant correlation was observed between the RVDC and the RCRPS in many regions (the r was 0.375 ~ 0.548, all p value <0.05). Significant positive correlations were found between RVDC in inner and outer temple regions with RCRPS at inner and outer nasal sectors. There were no significant correlations between RTC and RCRPS in other sectors except in the central cornea and the outer nasal retina (r:0.501, p:0.006). At baseline and 3 months after wearing the orthokeratology lens, no significant differences in the retinal microvasculature or thickness (p > 0.05) were observed at any regions. Conclusion: The correlation between the cornea and the retina was observed after orthokeratology. Cornea changes may affect regional retinal responses accordingly，which may explain how orthokeratology delays myopia progression partially.

The Long-Term Effect of Blue-Light Blocking Spectacle Lenses on Adults' Contrast Perception.

Purpose: To evaluate the long-term effect of two different degrees of blue-light blocking (BB) spectacle lenses on adults' contrast perception under various lighting conditions. Methods: In total, 144 healthy adults aged 24.70 (±4.32 years) were recruited to this randomized controlled trial. The participants were randomly divided into three groups and used three different spectacle lenses (15% BB: 15% blue-blocking spectacle lenses; 30% BB: 30% blue-blocking spectacle lenses; RC: regular clear lenses serving as control). Contrast sensitivity under four light conditions (scotopic and photopic, both with/without glare) was measured using standard clinical tests at baseline, 1 month, 3 months and 6 months of use. The area under the log contrast sensitivity function (AULCSF) was also computed as an index for their overall contrast sensitivity across spatial frequencies. Results: There was no significant difference in AULCSFs among the three types of spectacle lenses under any light condition (all P > 0.81). No statistical difference was found in the AULSCF among the four time points (all P > 0.39), with no interaction between the effects of group and time (all P > 0.42). Conclusion: Wearing blue-light blocking lens had no clinically significant effect on adults' long-term contrast perception under scotopic or photopic conditions, or with glare.

Salvianolic acid B ameliorates psoriatic changes in imiquimod-induced psoriasis on BALB/c mice by inhibiting inflammatory and keratin markers via altering phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B signaling pathway.

Salvianolic acid B (SAB) is an active phytocomponent of a popular Chinese herb called Radix Salvia militiorrhiza with numerous biological properties. The anti-psoriasis activity of SAB was examined by evaluating various psoriasis inflammatory and keratin markers against imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasis on BALB/c mice. Totally 50 healthy BALB/c mice were evenly divided into 5 groups including control, drug control (SAB; 40 mg/kg), IMQ-induced psoriasis (5%), IMQ exposure and treated with SAB (40 mg/kg), or standard methotrexate (MTX; 1 mg/kg). Mice supplemented with either SAB or MTX significantly lowered the values of psoriasis area severity index (PASI), erythema, scaling, skin thickness, inflammatory markers (interleukin [IL]-22/23/17A/1ß/6) and lipid peroxidation product (malondialdehyde). Also, IMQ exposed BALB/c mice treated with SAB or MTX display lesser histopathological changes with enhanced antioxidant activities (catalase, superoxide dismutase). Moreover, the protein expression of keratin markers (K16 and K17) and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) signaling proteins (pAkt/Akt and pPI3K/PI3K) were significantly downregulated after administration with SAB and MTX as compared with IMQ induced mice. Taking together, SAB and MTX significantly ameliorate psoriatic changes by inhibiting psoriatic inflammatory and keratin markers through abolishing PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. However, further studies (clinical trials) are needed to confirm the anti-psoriatic property of SAB before recommending to psoriasis patients.

Identification of the novel KIR3DL2*115 allele in a Chinese individual.

KIR3DL2*115 differs from KIR3DL2*01001 by a single nucleotide substitution at position 761 A>G.

Effect of Illumination on Ocular Status Modifications Induced by Short-Term 3D TV Viewing.

Objectives. This study aimed to compare changes in ocular status after 3D TV viewing under three modes of illumination and thereby identify optimal illumination for 3D TV viewing. Methods. The following measures of ocular status were assessed: the accommodative response, accommodative microfluctuation, accommodative facility, relative accommodation, gradient accommodative convergence/accommodation (AC/A) ratio, phoria, and fusional vergence. The observers watched 3D television for 90 minutes through 3D shutter glasses under three illumination modes: A, complete darkness; B, back illumination (50 lx); and C, front illumination (130 lx). The ocular status of the observers was assessed both before and after the viewing. Results. After 3D TV viewing, the accommodative response and accommodative microfluctuation were significantly changed under illumination Modes A and B. The near positive fusional vergence decreased significantly after the 90-minute 3D viewing session under each illumination mode, and this effect was not significantly different among the three modes. Conclusions. Short-term 3D viewing modified the ocular status of adults. The least amount of such change occurred with front illumination, suggesting that this type of illumination is an appropriate mode for 3D shutter TV viewing.

Cultivation of activated sludge using sea mud as seed to treat industrial phenolic wastewater with high salinity.

A technique is proposed to treat saline hazardous wastewater by using marine activated sludge, cultivated with sea mud as seed. Since the developed marine activated sludge had phenol-tolerant microorganisms (MAS-1, MAS-2 and MAS-3) which originated from the ocean, it was envisaged that these bacteria could survive and breakdown phenol in saline environments. In this work, typical phenol-tolerant microorganisms were isolated from the marine activated sludge and identified. After a hierarchical acclimation process, the marine activated sludge was used to treat the industrial phenolic wastewater with high salinity. The marine activated sludge was able to break down phenol and other organic components effectively and efficiently in treating the wastewater with salinity of 5.7% w/v. The results showed a high removal of phenol (99%), COD (80%) and NH3-N (68%).

Optimization of the ultrasound-assisted synthesis of lutein disuccinate using uniform design.

The ultrasound-assisted synthesis of lutein disuccinate from all-trans lutein (AL) and succinic anhydride (SA) was investigated in this study. Triethylamine was used as the catalyst. Based on the single-factor experiments, a 7-level-3-factor uniform design and response surface analysis were further employed to evaluate the effects of the selected variables including molar ratio of SA/AL, reaction time and ultrasonic power on the yield of lutein disuccinate. The results indicated that the data were adequately fitted into a second-order polynomial model; the molar ratio of SA/AL significantly affected the synthesis of lutein disuccinate, whereas reaction time and ultrasonic power did not. Based on ridge max analysis, the optimum condition for lutein disuccinate synthesis was predicted to be the molar ratio of SA/AL 265.3:1, ultrasonic power 300 W and reaction time 131.6 min with the lutein disuccinate yield of 80.53±0.18%, which give a 43.8% increase compared with the traditional method, and also significantly shorten the reaction time.

Corneal biomechanical properties and intraocular pressure in high myopic anisometropia.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate corneal biomechanical properties and intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients with high myopic anisometropia. METHODS: Patients with high myopic anisometropia (n = 23) and emmetropic subjects (n = 55) were enrolled. Corneal hysteresis (CH), Goldmann-correlated intraocular pressure (IOPg), corneal resistance factor, and corneal-compensated IOP (IOPcc) were measured with Ocular Response Analyzer. Central corneal thickness was measured by optical coherence tomography. Zeiss IOL-Master determined the values of corneal refractive power and ocular axial length. RESULTS: Significant differences were presented in CH, IOPg, and IOPcc among the high myopic, contralateral, and normal eyes (analysis of variance, P<0.05). CH in high myopic eye was lower than that in the other two groups (post hoc, P<0.05), whereas IOPg and IOPcc in both eyes of anisometropic myopia were higher compared with the normal subjects (post hoc, P<0.01). CH was associated with central corneal thickness and axial length in high myopic eyes. All measured biometric parameters showed significant correlations between two eyes in high myopic anisometropia. CONCLUSIONS: High myopic eyes showed decreased CH, but not corneal resistance factor, which indicates that some aspects of corneal biomechanical properties may be altered in high myopic eye of anisometropia. It is also suggested that anisometropic eyes with different refractive errors do not share the same biomechanical properties, which may impact IOP measurement.

Recovery of corneal hysteresis after reduction of intraocular pressure in chronic primary angle-closure glaucoma.

PURPOSE: To measure corneal hysteresis (CH) in unilateral chronic primary angle-closure glaucoma (CPACG) patients to determine if it was affected by high intraocular pressure (IOP). DESIGN: Prospective interventional case series. METHODS: CH and Goldmann-correlated IOP (IOPg) were obtained with the Ocular Response Analyzer (Reichert Ophthalmic Instruments, Dephew, New York, USA) and central corneal thickness (CCT) was measured by optical coherence tomography. Baseline CH, IOPg, and CCT were measured in 40 CPACG eyes and compared to the fellow eyes and 40 normal controls. Reduction of IOPg in CPACG eyes was achieved medically, followed by trabeculectomy and peripheral iridectomy. Measurements were repeated at 2 and 4 weeks posttherapy. RESULTS: IOPg decreased significantly from 31.55 +/- 10.48 mm Hg (mean +/- standard deviation) before therapy to 11.47 +/- 4.71 mm Hg, and CH increased significantly from 6.83 +/- 2.08 mm Hg to 9.22 +/- 1.80 mm Hg at 2 weeks, with no further changes after that. However, the CH in the treated eyes remained significantly lower compared with that of fellow and normal eyes. Before treatment, CH was negatively correlated with IOPg; however, there was no correlation after treatment. CCT was not affected by the reduced IOPg in the CPACG eyes. CONCLUSIONS: CH was significantly lower in CPACG patients, and partial recovery occurred after successful IOP-lowering therapy. Alternations affecting corneal biomechanical properties appear to occur during glaucoma development.

Evaluation of androgen receptor transcriptional activities of some pesticides in vitro.

Organophosphates and pyrethroids are among the most common pesticides currently in use worldwide. Several pesticides have been reported to possess hormonal activities, and thus are classified as endocrine disruptors. The present study was planned to evaluate potential androgenic and antiandrogenic activities of the pesticides. The selected chemicals are three organophosphate pesticides including dichlorvos, parathion and trichlorphon, and two pyrethroid pesticides including permethrin and cypermethrin. We evaluated the pesticides for androgen receptor (AR)-mediated mechanisms using a human AR reporter gene assay in African monkey kidney cell line CV-1 transiently transfected with the constructed reporter gene plasmid pMMTV-CAT and the hAR expression plasmid AR/pcDNA3.1. We demonstrated that parathion showed significant inhibitory effects on the transcriptional activity induced by 1 nM of DHT with IC(50) value of (2.01+/-0.42) x 10(-7) M, though trichlorphon and dichlorvos lacked this activity. The two pyrethroid pesticides permethrin and cypermethrin exhibited lower activity than parathion with IC(50) value of (5.68+/-2.20) x 10(-5) and (6.80+/-2.30) x 10(-5) M, respectively. On the other hand, we failed to find AR-mediated androgenic activities of the tested chemicals. It is suggested that parathion possesses the highest activity, and permethrin and cypermethrin acted as poor antiandrogens. The present study provides insight into the mechanism of the pesticides.