Quinic acid regulated TMA/TMAO-related lipid metabolism and vascular endothelial function through gut microbiota to inhibit atherosclerotic.

BACKGROUND: Quinic acid (QA) and its derivatives have good lipid-lowering and hepatoprotective functions, but their role in atherosclerosis remains unknown. This study attempted to investigate the mechanism of QA on atherogenesis in Apoe-/- mice induced by HFD. METHODS: HE staining and oil red O staining were used to observe the pathology. The PCSK9, Mac-3 and SM22a expressions were detected by IHC. Cholesterol, HMGB1, TIMP-1 and CXCL13 levels were measured by biochemical and ELISA. Lipid metabolism and the HMGB1-SREBP2-SR-BI pathway were detected by PCR and WB. 16 S and metabolomics were used to detect gut microbiota and serum metabolites. RESULTS: QA or low-frequency ABX inhibited weight gain and aortic tissue atherogenesis in HFD-induced Apoe-/- mice. QA inhibited the increase of cholesterol, TMA, TMAO, CXCL13, TIMP-1 and HMGB1 levels in peripheral blood of Apoe-/- mice induced by HFD. Meanwhile, QA or low-frequency ABX treatment inhibited the expression of CAV-1, ABCA1, Mac-3 and SM22α, and promoted the expression of SREBP-1 and LXR in the vascular tissues of HFD-induced Apoe-/- mice. QA reduced Streptococcus_danieliae abundance, and promoted Lactobacillus_intestinalis and Ileibacterium_valens abundance in HFD-induced Apoe-/- mice. QA altered serum galactose metabolism, promoted SREBP-2 and LDLR, inhibited IDOL, FMO3 and PCSK9 expression in liver of HFD-induced Apoe-/- mice. The combined treatment of QA and low-frequency ABX regulated microbe-related Glycoursodeoxycholic acid and GLYCOCHENODEOXYCHOLATE metabolism in HFD-induced Apoe-/- mice. QA inhibited TMAO or LDL-induced HCAECs damage and HMGB1/SREBP2 axis dysfunction, which was reversed by HMGB1 overexpression. CONCLUSIONS: QA regulated the gut-liver lipid metabolism and chronic vascular inflammation of TMA/TMAO through gut microbiota to inhibit the atherogenesis in Apoe-/- mice, and the mechanism may be related to the HMGB1/SREBP2 pathway.

Interspecific plant interaction structures the microbiomes of poplar-soil interface to alter nutrient cycling and utilization.

Terrestrial plants can influence the growth and health of adjacent plants through interspecific interaction. Here, the mechanisms of interspecific plant interaction on microbial function and nutrient utilization in the plant-soil interface (non-rhizosphere soil, rhizosphere soil, and root) were studied by soybean- and potato-poplar intercropping. First, metagenomics showed that soybean- and potato-poplar intercropping influenced the composition and co-occurrence networks of microbial communities in different ecological niches, with higher stability of the microbial community in soybean intercropping. Second, the gene abundance related to carbon metabolism, nitrogen cycling, phosphorus cycling, and sulfur cycling was increased at the poplar-soil interface in soybean intercropping. Moreover, soybean intercropping increased soil nutrient content and enzymatic activity. It showed higher metabolic potential in nutrient metabolism and transportation. Third, functional microorganisms that influenced nutrient cycling and transportation in different intercropping have been identified, namely Acidobacteria, Sphingomonas, Gemmatimonadaceae, Alphaproteobacteria, and Bradyrhizobium. Therefore, intercropping can construct microbial communities to alter metabolic functions and improve nutrient cycling and absorption. Interspecific plant interactions to influence the microbiome were revealed, opening up a new way for the precise regulation of plant microbiome.IMPORTANCEPoplar has the characteristics of wide distribution, strong adaptability, and fast growth, which is an ideal tree species for timber forest. In this study, metagenomics and elemental analysis were used to comprehensively reveal the effects of interspecific plant interactions on microbial communities and functions in different ecological niches. It can provide a theoretical basis for the development and application of the precise management model in poplar.

Galangin Attenuates Myocardial Ischemic Reperfusion-Induced Ferroptosis by Targeting Nrf2/Gpx4 Signaling Pathway.

Purpose: Myocardial ischemic reperfusion injury (MIRI) is a crucial clinical problem globally. The molecular mechanisms of MIRI need to be fully explored to develop new therapeutic methods. Galangin (Gal), which is a natural flavonoid extracted from Alpinia Officinarum Hance and Propolis, possesses a wide range of pharmacological activities, but its effects on MIRI remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the pharmacological effects of Gal on MIRI. Methods: C57BL/6 mice underwent reperfusion for 3 h after 45 min of ischemia, and neonatal rat cardiomyocytes (NRCs) subjected to hypoxia and reoxygenation (HR) were cultured as in vivo and in vitro models. Echocardiography and TTC-Evans Blue staining were performed to evaluate the myocardial injury. Transmission electron microscope and JC-1 staining were used to validate the mitochondrial function. Additionally, Western blot detected ferroptosis markers, including Gpx4, FTH, and xCT. Results: Gal treatment alleviated cardiac myofibril damage, reduced infarction size, improved cardiac function, and prevented mitochondrial injury in mice with MIRI. Gal significantly alleviated HR-induced cell death and mitigated mitochondrial membrane potential reduction in NRCs. Furthermore, Gal significantly inhibited ferroptosis by preventing iron overload and lipid peroxidation, as well as regulating Gpx4, FTH, and xCT expression levels. Moreover, Gal up-regulated nuclear transcriptive factor Nrf2 in HR-treated NRCs. Nrf2 inhibition by Brusatol abolished the protective effect of Gal against ferroptosis. Conclusion: This study revealed that Gal alleviates myocardial ischemic reperfusion-induced ferroptosis by targeting Nrf2/Gpx4 signaling pathway.

Safety accident analysis of power transmission and substation projects based on association rule mining.

To achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of power transmission and substation project construction, statistical analysis was used to provide an outline of safety accidents, the 4M1E method was applied for sorting out and analyzing the risk factors, and the Apriori algorithm was carried out for exploring the intrinsic interaction among risk factors based on association rule mining. The results showed that the safety accidents that happen in the construction of power transmission and substation projects were not much frequent, but deadly; the process of foundation construction and high fall was the most accident-prone process and injury type respectively. In addition, human behaviors were the foremost factors leading to accidents, and there was a strong correlation among the risk factors of low project management level, lack of safety awareness, and poor risk identification ability. For improving the security situation, measures should be taken for controlling human factors, performing flexible management, and strengthening safety training. In further research, more detailed and diversified accident reports and case data should be analyzed, and more consideration should be put on the weighted risk factor analysis to obtain more comprehensive and objective safety accident analysis results for power transmission and substation projects. This study highlights the risks in power transmission and substation project construction and introduces a novel method for better analyzing the intrinsic interaction among risk factors, which provides theoretical support for related departments to conduct sustainable safety management.

miR-19a-3p affected ox-LDL-induced SDC-1/TGF-ß1/Smad3 pathway in atherosclerosis.

Syndecan-1 (SDC-1) was a critical membrane proteoglycan and an important component of the glycocalyx in endothelial cells, but its role in atherosclerosis remains unknown. This study attempted to investigate the role of SDC-1 in atherosclerotic-related endothelial cell injury. Bioinformatics analyzed the differential miRNAs between atherosclerosis and healthy. Subjects with coronary atherosclerosis, which were diagnosed with intravascular atherosclerosis (IVUS), were enrolled as non-vulnerable plaque and vulnerable plaque in Changsha Central Hospital. Human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) were induced by oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) to construct an in vitro model. A dual luciferase reporter assay was applied to analyze the target between miR-19a-3p and SDC-1. The cell proliferation and apoptosis were detected by CCK8 and flow cytometry, respectively. SDC-1 and cholesterol efflux was determined by ELISA. The expression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transports A1 (ABCA1), miR-19a-3p, ABCG1 and SDC-1 genes were detected by RT-qPCR. The expressions of SDC-1, ABCA1, ABCG1, TGF-ß1, Smad3 and p-Smad3 proteins were detected by western blot. Our results found that miR-19a-3p was down-regulated in atherosclerosis. ox-LDL decreased miR-19a-3p expression, increased cholesterol efflux and the expression of ABCA1, ABCG1 and SDC-1 in HAECs. Vulnerable plaque tissues in patients with coronary atherosclerosis showed palpable fibrous necrosis and calcification with elevated blood SDC-1 levels. miR-19a-3p could bind to SDC-1. Overexpression of miR-19a-3p promoted cell proliferation, inhibited apoptosis and cholesterol efflux, down-regulated the expression of SDC-1, ABCA1, ABCG1, TGF-ß1 and p-Smad3 proteins in ox-LDL-induced HAECs. In conclusion, miR-19a-3p targeting SDC-1 inhibited the ox-LDL-induced activation of the TGF-ß1/Smad3 pathway in HAECs.

Variations in Growth and Photosynthetic Traits of Polyploid Poplar Hybrids and Clones in Northeast China.

To evaluate differences among 19 different ploidy hybrid poplar clones grown in northeast China, 21 traits related to growth traits and photosynthetic characteristics were detected and analyzed. Abundant phenotypic variations exist among and within populations, and these variations are the basis of forest tree genetic improvements. In this research, variance analysis showed that the traits except the net photosynthesis rate among the different ploidies and all the other traits exhibited significant differences among the ploidies or clones (p < 0.01). Estimation of phenotypic coefficients of variation, genotypic coefficients of variation, and repeatability is important for selecting superior materials. The larger the value, the greater the potential for material selection improvement. The repeatability of the different traits ranged from 0.88 to 0.99. The phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of variation of all the investigated traits ranged from 6.88% to 57.40% and from 4.85% to 42.89%, respectively. Correlation analysis showed that there were significant positive correlations between tree height, diameter, and volume. Transpiration rate, intercellular carbon dioxide concentration, and stomatal conductance were significantly positively correlated with each other but negatively correlated with instantaneous water use efficiency. Growth traits were weakly correlated with photosynthetic indexes. The rank correlation coefficient showed that most of the growth indicators reached a significant correlation level among different years (0.40-0.98), except 1-year-old tree height with 4-year-old tree height and 1-year-old ground diameter with 3-year-old tree height, which indicated the potential possibility for early selection of elite clones. Principal analysis results showed that the contribution rate of the first principal component was 46.606%, and 2-year-old tree height, 2-year-old ground diameter, 3-year-old tree height, 3-year-old ground diameter, 3-year-old diameter at breast height, 3-year-old volume, 4-year-old tree height, 4-year-old ground diameter, 4-year-old diameter at breast height, and 4-year-old volume showed higher vector values than other traits. With the method of multiple-trait comprehensive evaluation to evaluate clones, SX3.1, SY3.1, and XY4.2 were selected as elite clones, and the genetic gains of height, basal diameter, diameter at breast height, and volume of selected clones ranged from 12.85% to 64.87% in the fourth growth year. The results showed fundamental information for selecting superior poplar clones, which might provide new materials for the regeneration and improvement of forests in Northeast China.

Physiological and Transcriptomic Analysis Revealed the Molecular Mechanism of Pinus koraiensis Responses to Light.

Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis Sieb. et Zucc.), as the main tree species in northeast China, has important economic and ecological values. Currently, supplementary light has been widely used in plant cultivation projects. However, the studies about different supplementary light sources on the growth and development of Korean pine are few. In this study, the one with no supplementary light was used as the control, and two kinds of light sources were set up: light-emitting diode (LED) and incandescent lamp, to supplement light treatment of Korean pine. The spectrum and intensity of these two light sources were different. The results showed that the growth and physiological-biochemical indicators were significantly different under different supplementary light treatments. The biomass of supplementary light treatment was significantly lower than the control. Compared with the control, IAA and GA were lower, and JA, ABA, ZT, and ETH were higher under supplementary light conditions. Photosynthetic parameters in supplementary light conditions were significantly lower than the control. Supplemental light induces chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, and carotenoid accumulation. From RNA-seq data, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were observed in all the comparison groups, and there were 487 common DEGs. The expression levels of DEGs encoding transcription factors were also changed. According to GO and KEGG analysis, the plant hormone signal transduction, circadian rhythm-plant, and flavonoid biosynthesis pathways were the most enriched. These results provided a theoretical basis for the response of Korean pine to different supplementary lights.

Comparative Transcriptomic and Metabolic Analyses Reveal the Coordinated Mechanisms in Pinus koraiensis under Different Light Stress Conditions.

Light is one of the most important environmental cues that affects plant development and regulates its behavior. Light stress directly inhibits physiological responses and plant tissue development and even induces mortality in plants. Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis) is an evergreen conifer species widely planted in northeast China that has important economic and ecological value. However, the effects of light stress on the growth and development of Korean pine are still unclear. In this study, the effects of different shading conditions on physiological indices, molecular mechanisms and metabolites of Korean pine were explored. The results showed that auxin, gibberellin and abscisic acid were significantly increased under all shading conditions compared with the control. The contents of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and carotenoid also increased as the shading degree increased. Moreover, a total of 8556, 3751 and 6990 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were found between the control and HS (heavy shade), control and LS (light shade), LS vs. HS, respectively. Notably, most DEGs were assigned to pathways of phytohormone signaling, photosynthesis, carotenoid and flavonoid biosynthesis under light stress. The transcription factors MYB-related, AP2-ERF and bHLH specifically increased expression during light stress. A total of 911 metabolites were identified, and 243 differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs) were detected, among which flavonoid biosynthesis (naringenin chalcone, dihydrokaempferol and kaempferol) metabolites were significantly different under light stress. These results will provide a theoretical basis for the response of P. koraiensis to different light stresses.

The Manchurian Walnut Genome: Insights into Juglone and Lipid Biosynthesis.

BACKGROUND: Manchurian walnut (Juglans mandshurica Maxim.) is a tree with multiple industrial uses and medicinal properties in the Juglandaceae family (walnuts and hickories). J. mandshurica produces juglone, which is a toxic allelopathic agent and has potential utilization value. Furthermore, the seed of J. mandshurica is rich in various unsaturated fatty acids and has high nutritive value. FINDINGS: Here, we present a high-quality chromosome-scale reference genome assembly and annotation for J. mandshurica (n = 16) with a contig N50 of 21.4 Mb by combining PacBio high-fidelity reads with high-throughput chromosome conformation capture data. The assembled genome has an estimated sequence size of 548.7 Mb and consists of 657 contigs, 623 scaffolds, and 40,453 protein-coding genes. In total, 60.99% of the assembled genome consists of repetitive sequences. Sixteen super-scaffolds corresponding to the 16 chromosomes were assembled, with a scaffold N50 length of 33.7 Mb and a BUSCO complete gene percentage of 98.3%. J. mandshurica displays a close sequence relationship with Juglans cathayensis, with a divergence time of 13.8 million years ago. Combining the high-quality genome, transcriptome, and metabolomics data, we constructed a gene-to-metabolite network and identified 566 core and conserved differentially expressed genes, which may be involved in juglone biosynthesis. Five CYP450 genes were found that may contribute to juglone accumulation. NAC, bZip, NF-YA, and NF-YC are positively correlated with the juglone content. Some candidate regulators (e.g., FUS3, ABI3, LEC2, and WRI1 transcription factors) involved in the regulation of lipid biosynthesis were also identified. CONCLUSIONS: Our genomic data provide new insights into the evolution of the walnut genome and create a new platform for accelerating molecular breeding and improving the comprehensive utilization of these economically important tree species.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Management in Hunan Province, China: A Multi-Center Observational Study.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) care in China. Methods: We conducted a multicenter, retrospective cohort study in Hunan province (adjacent to the epidemic center), China. Consecutive patients presenting with STEMI within 12 h of symptom onset and receiving primary percutaneous coronary intervention, pharmaco-invasive strategy and only thrombolytic treatment, were enrolled from January 23, 2020 to April 8, 2020 (COVID-19 era group). The same data were also collected for the equivalent period of 2019 (pre-COVID-19 era group). Results: A total of 610 patients with STEMI (COVID-19 era group n = 286, pre-COVID-19 era group n = 324) were included. There was a decline in the number of STEMI admissions by 10.5% and STEMI-related PCI procedures by 12.7% in 2020 compared with the equivalent period of 2019. The key time intervals including time from symptom onset to first medical contact, symptom onset to door, door-to-balloon, symptom onset to balloon and symptom onset to thrombolysis showed no significant difference between these two groups. There were no significant differences for in-hospital death and major adverse cardiovascular events between these two groups. Conclusion: During the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in China, we observed a decline in the number of STEMI admissions and STEMI-related PCI procedures. However, the key quality indicators of STEMI care were not significantly affected. Restructuring health services during the COVID-19 pandemic has not significantly adversely influenced the in-hospital outcomes.

Probabilistic health risk assessment and monetization based on benzene series exposure in newly renovated teaching buildings.

To meet the needs of the rapid development of education, there have been growing investments in the issue of university infrastructures. However, few studies have paid attention to the assessment and monetization of health risks in newly renovated teaching buildings. In this study, concentrations of the benzene series (BTEX) group were measured in five areas of three newly renovated teaching buildings. A total of 135 BTEX samples were collected using passive diffusion monitors and analyzed by GC-FID. Human health risk assessments were conducted by using probabilistic methods for four types of population exposure to BTEX. The results showed that the cancer risk of benzene accounted for most of the total in each group. There was over 90% probability of excess cancer risks in the areas within the tested buildings; and the non-cancer risks were all within the acceptable level. The health risks of men were greater than those of women, and those of teachers were higher than those of students. The model calculation results of Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY) and Willingness to Pay (WTP) indicated that the average price that society was willing to pay to offset the health damage caused in these newly renovated teaching buildings was 381.35 yuan/year. For the first time, this study highlights the health risks of newly built teaching buildings in universities, points out the urgent need to improve the control of BTEX sources in this type of indoor environment; moreover, it provides theoretical support for the society and occupational protection departments to compensate for the health damage to professionals.

Trace Metal Lead Exposure in Typical Lip Cosmetics From Electronic Commercial Platform: Investigation, Health Risk Assessment and Blood Lead Level Analysis.

Lead (Pb) in lipstick products has become an increasing concern, which can cause safety problems to human body directly with diet. To investigate the Pb exposure and potential health risk level of typical popular lip cosmetics in Chinese e-commerce market, Python crawler was introduced to identify and select 34 typical popular lip cosmetics, including 12 lipsticks, 13 lip glosses, and 9 lip balms. And then this study used ICP-MS to determine the content of Pb. Furthermore, the ingestion health risk assessment method issued by United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and Monte Carlo simulation algorithm were applied to assess the probabilistic health risks of adults exposure. Finally, taking the possible exposure of children contacting with lip products, the health risk assessment of children blood Pb was carried out. The results showed that the concentration of Pb in lip products ranged from 0 to 0.5237 mg/kg, which was far lower than the limit set by various countries. The probabilistic non-carcinogenic risks and carcinogenic risks were 4.93 ×10-7~2.82 ×10-3 and 1.68 ×10-12~9.59 ×10-9, respectively, which were in an acceptable level. The results of blood Pb assessment suggested that the Pb content of lip cosmetics had no obvious influence on blood Pb concentration of children, and background Pb exposure is the main factor affecting children's blood Pb level (BLL). Overall, the samples of lip products are selected by Python crawler in this study, which are more objective and representative. This study focuses on deeper study of Pb, especially for the health risk assessment of blood Pb in children exposed to lip products. These results perhaps could provide useful information for the safety cosmetics usage for people in China and even the global world.

Circ_ROBO2/miR-149 Axis Promotes the Proliferation and Migration of Human Aortic Smooth Muscle Cells by Activating NF-κB Signaling.

Atherosclerosis is the leading global cause of mortality. The occurrence of coronary artery disease (CAD) is regulated by a diversity of pathways, including circRNAs. However, the potential mechanisms of circRNAs in CAD remain unclear. Here, qRT-PCR was used to examine the expressions of miR-149 and circ_ROBO2. Their influences on cell proliferation, migration, and apoptosis were measured by CCK-8, trans-well, and flow cytometry assays, respectively. The protein levels of p-IκBα and NF-κB p65 were examined using western blot. The molecular interactions were validated using dual luciferase reporter and RNA pull-down assays. The expression patterns of circ_ROBO2 and miR-149 in CAD patients and PDGF-BB-treated human aortic smooth muscle cells (HASMCs) were upregulated and downregulated, respectively. Knockdown of circ_ROBO2 could markedly inhibit the capabilities of proliferation and migration, enhance the apoptotic rate, and suppress NF-κB signaling in PDGF-BB-treated HASMCs. Mechanistically, circ_ROBO2 acted as a sponge of miR-149 to activate TRAF6/NF-κB signaling. Rescue studies demonstrated that neither silencing miR-149 nor activation of NF-κB signaling obviously abolished the biological roles of circ_ROBO2 knockdown in PDGF-BB treated-HASMCs. This discovery elucidated a functional mechanism of circ_ROBO2 in CAD, suggesting that circRNAs serve a vital role in the progression of CAD.

The regulatory role of gibberellin related genes DKGA2ox1 and MIR171f_3 in persimmon dwarfism.

'Nantongxiaofangshi' (Diospyros kaki Thunb., D. kaki Thunb.) is a local cultivar of persimmon with dwarf-like traits in Jiangsu, China. Closely spaced planting afforded by dwarfism is usually one of the most important ways to promote fruit cultivation and production. However, the understanding of dwarfism in D. kaki Thunb. is very limited at the molecular level, which hinders the further increase of the fruit production. In this work, a persimmon transgenic system was successfully established, and the field experiments of grafting phenotype were carried out. The results showed that D. kaki Thunb. could be used as an interstock to induce dwarfing in grafted scions, and the dwarf character was better when interstock lengths were between 20 and 25 cm. Furthermore, the key genes related to dwarfism in D. kaki Thunb. were screened and verified, and subsequently, the regulatory role of related genes in persimmon dwarfism was figured out. It was found that the gene encoding gibberellin 2-oxidase-1 (DkGA2ox1) involved in GA biosynthesis was associated with the dwarfing in D. kaki Thunb. Overexpression of DkGA2ox1 in Diospyros lotus resulted in a typical dwarf phenotype. Meanwhile, the microRNA data showed that the miR171f_3 demonstrated the active involvement in GA pathway response in persimmon dwarfism. DkGA2ox1 and MIR171f_3, as two highly expressed genes in D. kaki Thunb. interstock, could be used as stimulus signals to affect the content of GA in scion, however, the specific transmission mechanism still needs to be further explored. Ultimately, the bioactive GA level was decreased, resulting in the scion dwarfism.

LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 is upregulated in atherosclerosis and upregulates miR-21 through methylation in vascular smooth muscle cells.

BACKGROUND: LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 is a critical player in the proliferation of aortic smooth muscle cells. It is known that artery injury plays an important role in atherosclerosis. However, the potential implication of LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 in atherosclerosis remains unclear. In this study, we collected artery specimens from patients with atherosclerosis and healthy controls to investigate the involvement of LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 in atherosclerosis. METHODS: Sixty patients with atherosclerosis and 60 controls, admitted at The First Hospital of Changsha (Changsha, China), between March 2017 and March 2019, were included. An artery biopsy was performed on all participants to obtain the artery specimens. Real-time quantitative PCR were performed to quantify the relative expression level of LncRNA-TCONS_00034812. Its role in atherosclerotic lesion was evaluated in (high fat diet) HFD-induced ApoE-/- mice. Moreover, human aortic smooth muscle cells (HAOSMCs) was employed to study functional role of LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 overexpression and knockdown by methylation-specific PCR and cell proliferation assay. RESULTS: Overexpression of TCONS_00034812 resulted in miR-21 upregulation and a decrease of miR-21 gene methylation. In contrast, silencing of TCONS_00034812 caused miR-21 downregulation and an increase of miR-21 gene methylation. Cell proliferation analysis indicated that the overexpression of TCONS_00034812 and miR-21 promoted cell proliferation, while silencing of TCONS_00034812 played an opposite role. Moreover, miR-21 overexpression weakened the effects of silencing TCONS_00034812 on cell proliferation. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 is upregulated in atherosclerotic samples, and its overexpression upregulates miR-21 through methylation in human aortic smooth muscle cells (HAOSMCs). Our study indicates that LncRNA-TCONS_00034812 could serve as a potential biomarker for diagnosis of atherosclerosis.

The association between toxic pesticide environmental exposure and Alzheimer's disease: A scientometric and visualization analysis.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases. The association between environmental factors (e.g., pesticide) and AD has attracted considerable attention. However, no systematic analysis has been performed and make it difficult to provide deeper insights of AD correlated with pesticide exposure. Hence, this study utilized a bibliometric and visual approach that included map collaborations, co-citations, and keywords, to identifying the knowledge structure, hot topics and the research trends based on 372 publications from the Web of Science Core Collection and PubMed databases. The results showed that 116 institutions from 52 countries published articles in this field. The United States and Israel played a leading role with numerous publications in related journals, as well as prolific institutions and authors, respectively. Three hot topics in pesticide-induced AD were recognized based on co-occurrence keywords detection, including acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor, oxidative stress, and AChE. Moreover, analysis of keywords burst suggests that some potential molecular mechanisms and therapy targets of pesticide-induced AD, especially for mitochondrial dysfunction and monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) that catalyzes the oxidative deamination and causes oxidative stress, are emerging trends. In addition, the study of various pesticides and the assessment method of pesticide exposure will step forward as well. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to specifically visualize the relationship between AD and pesticide exposure and to predict potential future research directions.

Investigation and probabilistic health risk assessment of trace elements in good sale lip cosmetics crawled by Python from Chinese e-commerce market.

A growing body of evidence suggests that the lip products are polluted by heavy metals, which would inevitably cause safety problems with long-term exposure, but few studies have focused on their deeper health risk assessments. This study sets out to identify the lip cosmetics in good sale from Chinese e-commerce market utilizing Python crawler and then explore the probabilistic health risks caused by 6 trace elements in 34 most popular lip cosmetics with Monte Carlo simulation. The results found that there was no obvious non-carcinogenic risk to humans. As for high users, the carcinogenic risk levels of Cr exceeded the acceptable risk recommended by USEPA, approximately 10% and 25% for lipsticks and lip glosses, respectively. Cr was regarded as the priority metal for risk control in the present study. Finally, it was recommended that the minimum use period limit for using up one lip product ranged from 0.54 months to 5.74 months. Overall, this study appears to be the first to conduct a probabilistic health risk assessment of trace elements in lip products, which would be of significance for policy makers to take effective strategies to minimize exposure health risk and contamination.

Polyamine Metabolism, Photorespiration, and Excitation Energy Allocation in Photosystem II Are Potentially Regulatory Hubs in Poplar Adaptation to Soil Nitrogen Availability.

Nitrogen fertilization is common for poplar trees to improve growth and productivity. The utilization of N by poplar largely depends on fertilizer application patterns; however, the underlying regulatory hubs are not fully understood. In this study, N utilization and potentially physiological regulations of two poplar clones (XQH and BC5) were assessed through two related experiments (i: five levels of N supply and ii: conventional and exponential N additions). Poplar growth (leaf area) and N utilization significantly increased under fertilized compared to unfertilized conditions, whereas photosynthetic N utilization efficiency significantly decreased under low N supplies. Growth characteristics were better in the XQH than in the BC5 clone under the same N supplies, indicating higher N utilization efficiency. Leaf absorbed light energy, and thermal dissipation fraction was significantly different for XQH clone between conventional and exponential N additions. Leaf concentrations of putrescine (Put) and acetylated Put were significantly higher in exponential than in conventional N addition. Photorespiration significantly increased in leaves of XQH clone under exponential compared to conventional N addition. Our results indicate that an interaction of the clone and N supply pattern significantly occurs in poplar growth; leaf expansion and the storage N allocations are the central hubs in the regulation of poplar N utilization.

Growth performance and nitrogen allocation within leaves of two poplar clones after exponential and conventional nitrogen applications.

Populus species are fast growing with high N requirements; an optimum level of fertilization is necessary for high seedling quality and subsequent plantation productivity. In this study, the morphological and physiological responses of two poplar clones (XH and BL3) to exponential and conventional N dosages were investigated, with a specific focus on leaf traits, the photorespiratory N cycle, and the interconversion of amino acids within leaves. Results show that shoot height and leaf number exponentially increased with plant growth. Leaf area, chlorophyll concentration, and net photosynthetic rate significantly increased for both clones during N fertilization, with a significant difference only in leaf area of clone XH between exponential and conventional dosages. Leaf concentrations of free amino acids and soluble sugars were not different but soluble proteins and fatty acids were significantly different for clone XH between N dosages; the amino acids glutamate, alanine, and aspartic acid concentrations increased in exponentially fertilized seedlings compared to controls. Amino acids, including the composition concentration and activity of glutamic-oxalacetic and -pyruvic transaminase, and soluble sugars were significantly higher for clone BL3 in fertilized seedlings. Photorespiration (glycine and glycolate oxidase) and glutathione redox (oxidized glutathione) were affected by fertilization. The activities of key enzymes (glycolate oxidase, catalase, and γ-glutamate cysteine ligase) involved in photorespiration and glutathione metabolism were lower for clone XH with exponential fertilization. Phenylalanine catabolism was influenced by fertilization and the interaction, clone × fertilization, showing accumulation of phenylalanine and tyrosine but decreases in phenylalanine ammonialyase activity and flavonoid concentrations in leaves of fertilized seedlings. The results indicate that leaf area and the interconversion of amino acids through deamidation/transamination are key regulatory hubs in poplar acclimation to soil N availability.