Nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat receptor homologs Pib and PibH8 interact and contribute to immunity in rice.

Plant nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat receptors (NLRs) sense pathogen effectors and activate effector-triggered immunity (ETI). Many plant NLRs form pairs with other NLRs to recognize effectors and initiate ETI. PIRICULARIA ORYZAE RESISTANCE IN BL1 (Pib), an NLR protein in rice (Oryza sativa), activates resistance by recognizing the rice blast effector AvrPib. The activation of Pib is suppressed by SH3 DOMAIN-CONTAINING PROTEIN 2 (OsSH3P2) in the absence of AvrPib. However, how Pib triggers defense responses and whether Pib pairs with another NLR are not clear. In this study, we identified Pib by map-based cloning and showed that a homolog of Pib, PIB HOMOLOGUE 8 (PibH8), interacts with Pib. Pib and PibH8 mediate resistance to the Magnaporthe oryzae isolate Guy11, a rice blast strain carrying AvrPib. Interestingly, the pib/pibh8 double mutant exhibited enhanced susceptibility to Guy11 compared to the single mutant. Furthermore, PibH8 can oligomerize through its coiled-coil (CC) domain, which also contributes to the Pib-PibH8 interaction, suggesting that Pib and PibH8 may form a complex to recognize AvrPib. OsSH3P2 inhibited the interaction of Pib and PibH8 through association with the CC domain of PibH8. Taken together, these results indicate that both Pib and PibH8 are required for rice blast resistance to M. oryzae carrying AvrPib, which is negatively regulated by OsSH3P2. This study not only identifies an NLR that functions in rice blast resistance but also reveals a possible complex immune strategy in which homologous NLR proteins may regulate the complete activation of plant immunity.

Alternative polyadenylation profiles of susceptible and resistant rice (Oryza sativa L.) in response to bacterial leaf blight using RNA-seq.

BACKGROUND: Alternative polyadenylation (APA) is an important pattern of post-transcriptional regulation of genes widely existing in eukaryotes, involving plant physiological and pathological processes. However, there is a dearth of studies investigating the role of APA profile in rice leaf blight. RESULTS: In this study, we compared the APA profile of leaf blight-susceptible varieties (CT 9737-613P-M) and resistant varieties (NSIC RC154) following bacterial blight infection. Through gene enrichment analysis, we found that the genes of two varieties typically exhibited distal poly(A) (PA) sites that play different roles in two kinds of rice, indicating differential APA regulatory mechanisms. In this process, many disease-resistance genes displayed multiple transcripts via APA. Moreover, we also found five polyadenylation factors of similar expression patterns of rice, highlighting the critical roles of these five factors in rice response to leaf blight about PA locus diversity. CONCLUSION: Notably, the present study provides the first dynamic changes of APA in rice in early response to biotic stresses and proposes a possible functional conjecture of APA in plant immune response, which lays the theoretical foundation for in-depth determination of the role of APA events in plant stress response and other life processes.

Biomedical Big Data Technologies, Applications, and Challenges for Precision Medicine: A Review.

The explosive growth of biomedical Big Data presents both significant opportunities and challenges in the realm of knowledge discovery and translational applications within precision medicine. Efficient management, analysis, and interpretation of big data can pave the way for groundbreaking advancements in precision medicine. However, the unprecedented strides in the automated collection of large-scale molecular and clinical data have also introduced formidable challenges in terms of data analysis and interpretation, necessitating the development of novel computational approaches. Some potential challenges include the curse of dimensionality, data heterogeneity, missing data, class imbalance, and scalability issues. This overview article focuses on the recent progress and breakthroughs in the application of big data within precision medicine. Key aspects are summarized, including content, data sources, technologies, tools, challenges, and existing gaps. Nine fields-Datawarehouse and data management, electronic medical record, biomedical imaging informatics, Artificial intelligence-aided surgical design and surgery optimization, omics data, health monitoring data, knowledge graph, public health informatics, and security and privacy-are discussed.

Decoding surgical skill: an objective and efficient algorithm for surgical skill classification based on surgical gesture features -experimental studies.

BACKGROUND: Various surgical skills lead to differences in patient outcomes and identifying poorly skilled surgeons with constructive feedback contributes to surgical quality improvement. The aim of the study was to develop an algorithm for evaluating surgical skills in laparoscopic cholecystectomy based on the features of elementary functional surgical gestures (Surgestures). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy-five laparoscopic cholecystectomy videos were collected from 33 surgeons in five hospitals. The phase of mobilization hepatocystic triangle and gallbladder dissection from the liver bed of each video were annotated with 14 Surgestures. The videos were grouped into competent and incompetent based on the quantiles of modified global operative assessment of laparoscopic skills (mGOALS). Surgeon-related information, clinical data, and intraoperative events were analyzed. Sixty-three Surgesture features were extracted to develop the surgical skill classification algorithm. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the classification and the top features were evaluated. RESULTS: Correlation analysis revealed that most perioperative factors had no significant correlation with mGOALS scores. The incompetent group has a higher probability of cholecystic vascular injury compared to the competent group (30.8 vs 6.1%, P =0.004). The competent group demonstrated fewer inefficient Surgestures, lower shift frequency, and a larger dissection-exposure ratio of Surgestures during the procedure. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the classification algorithm achieved 0.866. Different Surgesture features contributed variably to overall performance and specific skill items. CONCLUSION: The computer algorithm accurately classified surgeons with different skill levels using objective Surgesture features, adding insight into designing automatic laparoscopic surgical skill assessment tools with technical feedback.

Receptor-like kinases OsRLK902-1 and OsRLK902-2 form immune complexes with OsRLCK185 to regulate rice blast resistance.

Receptor-like kinases (RLKs) are major regulators of the plant immune response and play important roles in the perception and transmission of immune signals. RECEPTOR LIKE KINASE 902 (RLK902) is at the key node in leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase interaction networks and positively regulates resistance to the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae in Arabidopsis. However, the function of RLK902 in fungal disease resistance remains obscure. In this study, we found that the expression levels of OsRLK902-1 and OsRLK902-2, encoding two orthologues of RLK902 in rice, were induced by Magnaporthe oryzae, chitin, and flg22 treatment. osrlk902-1 and osrlk902-2 knockout mutants displayed enhanced susceptibility to M. oryzae. Interestingly, the osrlk902-1 rlk902-2 double mutant exhibited similar disease susceptibility, hydrogen peroxide production, and callose deposition to the two single mutants. Further investigation showed that OsRLK902-1 interacts with and stabilizes OsRLK902-2. The two OsRLKs form a complex with OsRLCK185, a key regulator in chitin-triggered immunity, and stabilize it. Taken together, our data demonstrate that OsRLK902-1 and OsRLK902-2, as well as OsRLCK185 function together in regulating disease resistance to M. oryzae in rice.

SPR9 encodes a 60 S ribosomal protein that modulates panicle spreading and affects resistance to false smut in rice (Oryza sativa. L).

BACKGROUND: The architecture of inflorescence in crops is a key agronomic feature determining grain yield and thus has been a major target trait of cereal domestication. RESULTS: In this study, we show that a simple spreading panicle change in rice panicle shape, controlled by the Spreading Panicle 9 (SPR9) locus, also has a significant impact on the resistance to rice false smut (RFS). Meanwhile, we mapped a novel spr9 mutant gene between markers Indel5-18 and Indel5-22 encompassing a genomic region of 43-kb with six candidate genes. Through gene prediction and cDNA sequencing, we confirmed that LOC_Os05g38520 is the target gene in the spr9 mutant, which encodes 60 S ribosomal protein L36-2. Further analysis showed that the spr9 mutant is caused by a 1 bp deletion in the first exon that resulted in premature termination. Knockout experiments showed that the SPR9 gene is responsible for the spreading panicle phenotype of the spr9 mutant. Interestingly, the spr9 mutant was found to improve resistance to RFS without affecting major agronomic traits. Taken together, our results revealed that the spr9 allele has good application prospects in rice breeding for disease resistance and panicle improvement. CONCLUSIONS: We report the map-based cloning and functional characterization of SPR9, which encodes a 60 S ribosomal protein that regulates spreading panicles and affects the resistance to false smut in rice.

An adaptive group sparse feature decomposition method in frequency domain for rolling bearing fault diagnosis.

Group-sparse mode decomposition (GSMD) is a decomposition method designed based on the group sparse property of signals in frequency domain. It is proved to be highly efficient and robust against noise, showing bright prospects for bearing fault diagnosis. However, the following adverse factors may impede its application for incipient bearing fault feature extraction: Initially, the GSMD method did not consider the impulsiveness and periodicity of the bearing fault feature. As a result, the ideal filter bank generated by GSMD may not accurately cover the fault frequency band because it may produce over-coarse or over-narrow filter bank under the condition of strong interference harmonics, large random shocks and heavy noise. Moreover, the location of informative frequency band was obstructed since the bearing fault signal shows complicated distribution in frequency domain. To overcome the abovementioned limitations, an adaptive group sparse feature decomposition (AGSFD) method is proposed. Firstly, the harmonics, large-amplitude random shocks and periodic transient feature are modeled as limited bandwidth signals in the frequency domain. On this basis, an autocorrection of envelope derivation operator harmonic to noise ratio (AEDOHNR) indicator is proposed to guild the construction and optimization of the filter bank of AGSFD. Also, the regularization parameters of AGSFD are adaptively determined. With the optimized filter bank, the original bearing fault is decomposed into a serial of components with AGSFD method, where the sensitive fault-induced periodic transient component is maintained using the AEDOHNR indicator. Finally, the studies of the simulation and two experimental items are carried out to evaluate the feasibility and the superiority of AGSFD method. The results indicate the AGSFD method can identify the early failure in the presence of heavy noise, strong harmonics or random shocks and has better decomposition efficiency.

The Genetic Mechanism of the Immune Response to the Rice False Smut (RFS) Fungus Ustilaginoidea virens.

Rice false smut (RFS), which is caused by Ustilaginoidea virens (U. virens), has become one of the most devastating diseases in rice-growing regions worldwide. The disease results in a significant yield loss and poses health threats to humans and animals due to producing mycotoxins. In this review, we update the understanding of the symptoms and resistance genes of RFS, as well as the genomics and effectors in U. virens. We also highlight the genetic mechanism of the immune response to RFS. Finally, we analyse and explore the identification method for RFS, breeding for resistance against the disease, and interactions between the effector proteins and resistance (R) proteins, which would be involved in the development of rice disease resistance materials for breeding programmes.

Fine Mapping and Cloning of a qRA2 Affect the Ratooning Ability in Rice (Oryza sativa L.).

Ratooning ability is a key factor that influences the ratoon rice yield in areas where light and temperature are not sufficient for second-season rice. Near-isogenic lines (NILs) are the most powerful tools for the detection and precise mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTLs). In this study, using 176 NILs, we identified a novel QTL for ratooning ability in NIL128. First, we mapped the QTL between the markers Indel12-29 and Indel12-31, which encompass a region of 233 kb. The rice genome annotation indicated the existence of three candidate genes in this region that may be related to ratooning ability. Through gene prediction and cDNA sequencing, we speculated that the target gene of ratooning ability is LOC_Os02g51930 which encodes cytokinin glucosyl transferases (CGTs), hereafter named qRA2. Further analysis showed that qra2 was a 1-bp substitution in the first exon in NIL128, which resulted in the premature termination of qRA2. The results of the knockdown experiment showed that the Jiafuzhan knockdown mutants exhibited the ratooning ability phenotype of NIL128. Interestingly, the qRA2 gene was found to improve ratooning ability without affecting major agronomic traits. These results will help us better understand the genetic basis of rice ratooning ability and provide a valuable gene resource for breeding strong ratoon rice varieties.

Coupling coordination and spatiotemporal dynamic evolution of the water-energy-food-land (WEFL) nexus in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China.

The interrelationship between regional water, energy, food, and land systems is extremely complex. Hence, accurately assessing the coupling coordination relationship and identifying the influential factors of the water-energy-food-land nexus (WEFL nexus) are of utmost importance. This study proposes a novel analytical framework and evaluation index system for exploring interactions across the WEFL nexus. The comprehensive benefit evaluation index (CBEI), coupling coordination degree (CCD) model, and obstacle factor diagnosis model are integrated to assess and analyze the coupling coordination relationship and spatiotemporal dynamic evolution of the WEFL nexus in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) from 2006 to 2020. The results indicated that (1) the CBEI and CCD generally increased from 0.23 to 0.79 and 0.45 to 0.88, respectively, revealing the upward trend of the coordination development levels of the WEFL nexus in the YREB. (2) The lower reaches achieved a relatively higher coordination development degree than the upper and middle reaches of the YREB. (3) The findings of obstacle factors reveal that agricultural non-point source pollution control, waterlogging disaster prevention, industrial solid waste efficient treatment, and urban water-saving are the essential fields that need to be improved in YREB's future development. This study helps to understand the complex interrelation of the WEFL nexus at different spatial-temporal scales and provides a novel framework that can be used as an evaluation system and policy insights for a region's integrated resources, environmental management, and green sustainable development.

Removal of fluoride using platanus acerifoli leaves biochar - an efficient and low-cost application in wastewater treatment.

The fluoride with high-concentration in industrial wastewater will cause great harm to the environment and calcium-modified biochar is an effective adsorbent for the removal of fluoride. Biochar composites were prepared from mature and dried dead leaves and eggshell to remove fluoride from the aqueous solution. The effects of raw material ratio, pH, contact time, adsorbent dosage, temperature, initial concentration of fluoride, and the coexisting ions on the removal efficiency of fluoride were explored. The biochar composites before and after fluoride removal were characterized by the SEM, FTIR, XRD, and XPS, which showed CaF2 precipitation was formed during the adsorption. The kinetics and isotherm study showed that chemical adsorption was the primary step for the fluoride adsorption of the biochar composites. The removal efficiency of fluoride can reach 98.53% when the amount of adsorbent was 1.6 g/L and the fluoride concentration was 500 mg/L. The BET-specific surface area of platanus acerifoli leaves biochar was 410.14 m2/g, which was suitable for the adsorption carrier. The adsorption capacity of the biochar composite materials was as high as 308 mg/g. The platanus acerifoli leaves-eggshell biochar composite with large pore size and high removal efficiency may be used as an efficient and low-cost adsorbent for treating high-concentration fluoride-containing wastewater.

Effects of Dynamic IMU-to-Segment Misalignment Error on 3-DOF Knee Angle Estimation in Walking and Running.

The inertial measurement unit (IMU)-to-segment (I2S) alignment is an important part of IMU-based joint angle estimation, and the accurate estimation of the three degree of freedom (3-DOF) knee angle can provide practical support for the evaluation of motions. In this paper, we introduce a dynamic weight particle swarm optimization (DPSO) algorithm with crossover factor based on the joint constraint to obtain the dynamic alignment vectors of I2S, and use them to perform the quaternion-based 3-DOF knee angle estimation algorithm. The optimization algorithm and the joint angle estimation algorithm were evaluated by comparing with the optical motion capture system. The range of 3-DOF knee angle root mean square errors (RMSEs) is 1.6°-5.9° during different motions. Furthermore, we also set up experiments of human walking (3 km/h), jogging (6 km/h) and ordinary running (9 km/h) to investigate the effects of dynamic I2S misalignment errors on 3-DOF knee angle estimation during different motions by artificially adding errors to I2S alignment parameters. The results showed differences in the effects of I2S misalignment errors on the estimation of knee abduction, internal rotation and flexion, which indicate the differences in knee joint kinematics among different motions. The IMU to thigh misalignment error has the greatest effect on the estimation of knee internal rotation. The effect of IMU to thigh misalignment error on the estimation of knee abduction angle becomes smaller and then larger during the two processes of switching from walking to jogging and then speeding up to ordinary running. The effect of IMU to shank misalignment error on the estimation of knee flexion angle is numerically the largest, while the standard deviation (SD) is the smallest. This study can provide support for future research on the accuracy of 3-DOF knee angle estimation during different motions.

Analysis of a rice blast resistance gene Pita-Fuhui2663 and development of selection marker.

Rice blast is a detrimental rice disease caused by the fungus Magnaporthe oryzae. Here, we identified a resistance gene from the rice cultivar Fuhui 2663 which is resistant to the rice blast isolate KJ201. Through isolated population analyses and sequencing approaches, the candidate gene was traced to chromosome 12. With the use of a map-based cloning strategy, the resistance gene was ultimately mapped to an 80-kb resistance locus region containing the Pita gene. Candidate gene prediction and cDNA sequencing indicated that the target resistance gene in Fuhui 2663 was allelic to Pita, thus being referred to as Pita-Fuhui2663 hereafter. Further analysis showed that the Fuhui 2663 protein had one amino acid change: Ala (A) residue 918 in Pita-Fuhui2663 was replaced by Ser (S) in Pita-S, leading to a significant change in the 3D structure of the Pita-S protein. CRISPR/Cas9 knockout experiments confirmed that Pita-Fuhui2663 is responsible for the resistance phenotype of Fuhui 2663. Importantly, Pita-Fuhui2663 did not affect the main agronomic traits of the variety compared to the Pita gene as verified by knockout experiments, indicative of potential applications of Pita-Fuhui2663 in broader breeding programs. Furthermore, a Pita-Fuhui2663-dCAPS molecular marker with good specificity and high efficiency was developed to facilitate rice breeding for resistance to this devastating disease.

Customized Utilization Strategies of Industrial Lignin to Produce Adsorbents and Flocculants Based on Fractionation and Adequate Structural Interpretation.

Lignin, a by-product of pulping and biorefinery, has great potential to replace petrochemical resources for wastewater purification. However, the defects of lignin, such as severe heterogeneity, inferior reactivity and poor solubility, characterize the production process of lignin-based products by high energy consumption and serious pollution. In this study, several lignin fractions with relatively homogeneous structure were first obtained by organic solvent fractionation, and their structures were fully deciphered by various characterization techniques. Subsequently, each lignin component was custom-valued for wastewater purification based on their structural characteristics. Benefiting from the high reactivity and reaction accessibility, the lignin fraction (lignin-1) refined by dissolving in ethanol and n-butanol could been used as a raw material to produce cationic lignin-based flocculant (LBF) in a copolymerization system using green, cheap and recyclable ethanol as solvent. The lignin fraction (lignin-2) extracted by methanol and dioxane showed low reactivity and high carbon content, which was used to produce lignin-based activated carbon (LAC) with phosphoric acid as activator. Moreover, the influences of synthetic factors on the purification capacity were discussed, and the LBF and LAC produced under the optimal conditions showed distinguished purification effect on kaolin suspension and heavy metal wastewater, respectively. Furthermore, the corresponding purification mechanism and external factors were also elaborated. It is believed that this cleaner production strategy is helpful for the valorization of lignin in wastewater resources.

Fine Mapping and Cloning of a Major QTL qph12, Which Simultaneously Affects the Plant Height, Panicle Length, Spikelet Number and Yield in Rice (Oryza sativa L.).

Plant height is one of the most important agronomical traits in rice (Oryza sativa L.). Introducing the semidwarf rice in the 1960s significantly enhanced the rice yield potential in Asia. Implementing near-isogenic lines (NILs) is the most powerful tool for the identification and fine mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTLs). In this study, 176 NILs were produced from the crossing and back-crossing of two rice cultivars. Specifically, the indica rice cultivar Jiafuzhan served as a recipient, and the restorer japonica cultivar Hui1586 served as a donor. Using the 176 NILs, we identified a novel major QTL for reduced plant height in the NIL36 line. The qph12 QTL was mapped to a 31 kb genomic region between the indel markers Indel12-29 and Indel12-31. The rice genome annotation indicated the presence of three candidate genes in this genomic region. Through gene prediction and cDNA sequencing, we confirmed that LOC_Os12g40890 (qPH12) is the target gene in the NIL36 line. Further analysis showed that the qph12 QTL is caused by a 1 bp deletion in the first exon that resulted in premature termination of the qPH12. Knockout experiments showed that the qph12 QTL is responsible for the reduced plant height phenotype of the NIL36 line. Although the qph12 gene from the NIL36 line showed a shorter panicle length, fewer spikelets per panicle and a lower plant grain yield, the plant also exhibited a lower plant height. Taken together, our results revealed that the qph12 have good specific application prospects in future rice breeding.

Surgesture: a novel instrument based on surgical actions for objective skill assessment.

BACKGROUND: Due to varied surgical skills and the lack of an efficient rating system, we developed Surgesture based on elementary functional surgical gestures performed by surgeons, which could serve as objective metrics to evaluate surgical performance in laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). METHODS: We defined 14 LC basic Surgestures. Four surgeons annotated Surgestures among LC videos performed by experts and novices. The counts, durations, average action time, and dissection/exposure ratio (D/E ratio) of LC Surgestures were compared. The phase of mobilizing hepatocystic triangle (MHT) was extracted for skill assessment by three professors using a modified Global Operative Assessment of Laparoscopic Skills (mGOALS). RESULTS: The novice operation time was significantly longer than the expert operation time (58.12 ± 19.23 min vs. 26.66 ± 8.00 min, P < 0.001), particularly during MHT phase. Novices had significantly more Surgestures than experts in both hands (P < 0.05). The left hand and inefficient Surgesture of novices were dramatically more than those of experts (P < 0.05). The experts demonstrated a significantly higher D/E ratio of duration than novices (0.79 ± 0.37 vs. 2.84 ± 1.98, P < 0.001). The counts and time pattern map of LC Surgestures during MHT demonstrated that novices tended to complete LC with more types of Surgestures and spent more time exposing the surgical scene. The performance metrics of LC Surgesture had significant but weak associations with each aspect of mGOALS. CONCLUSION: The newly constructed Surgestures could serve as accessible and quantifiable metrics for demonstrating the operative pattern and distinguishing surgeons with various skills. The association between Surgestures and Global Rating Scale laid the foundation for establishing a bridge to automated objective surgical skill evaluation.

The 14-3-3 protein GF14c positively regulates immunity by modulating the protein homoeostasis of the GRAS protein OsSCL7 in rice.

Various types of transcription factors have been reported to be involved in plant-pathogen interactions by regulating defence-related genes. GRAS proteins, plant- specific transcription factors, have been shown to play essential roles in plant growth, development and stress responses. By performing a transcriptome study on rice early defence responses to Magnaporthe oryzae, we identified a GRAS protein, OsSCL7, which was induced by M. oryzae infection. We characterized the function of OsSCL7 in rice disease resistance. OsSCL7 was upregulated upon exposure to M. oryzae and pathogen-associated molecular pattern treatments, and knocking out OsSCL7 resulted in decreased disease resistance of rice to M. oryzae. In contrast, overexpression of OsSCL7 could improve rice disease resistance to M. oryzae. OsSCL7 was mainly localized in the nucleus and showed transcriptional activity. OsSCL7 can interact with GF14c, a 14-3-3 protein, and loss-of-function GF14c leads to enhanced susceptibility to M. oryzae. Additionally, OsSCL7 protein levels were reduced in the gf14c mutant and knocking out OsSCL7 affected the expression of a series of defence-related genes. Taken together, these findings uncover the important roles of OsSCL7 and GF14c in plant immunity and a potential mechanism by which plants fine-tune immunity by regulating the protein stability of a GRAS protein via a 14-3-3 protein.

Dynamic characteristics and synergistic effects of ecosystem services under climate change scenarios on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) supplies many ecosystem services (ESs) that maintain local and global pan-Asian populations and ecosystems. The effects of climate change on ES provision in the QTP will have far-reaching impacts on the region and the many downstream ecosystems and countries that depend on ESs from the "Third Pole". This study undertook a systematic assessment of ES provision, trade-offs and synergies between four ESs (raw material provision, water yield, soil retention, and carbon storage) under future climate scenarios (representative concentration pathway). The results show that: (1) the total amount of the four ESs on the QTP is predicted to increase from 1980 to 2100 for three climate change scenarios. (2) The spatial pattern of ESs on the QTP will not change significantly in the future, and the grassland and forest ESs in the central and southern regions are predicted to increase significantly. (3) The synergistic interactions among ESs were generally consistent at three spatial scales (10 km (pixel), county and watershed scales), but with more significant synergistic effects at the watershed scale. This demonstrates the necessity for the examination of scale-dependent ES dynamics and interactions. This study will supply a reference for further research on long-term ES assessments, especially the dynamic ES changes and the spatial scale dependency of the ES interactions, and provide evidence-based strategies for formulating ecosystem management on the QTP under climate change.

[Correlation of lifelong premature ejaculation with 5-HT system gene polymorphism].

Premature ejaculation is one of the common male sexual dysfunction diseases. Lifelong premature ejaculation (LPE), characterized by an early onset and a long course of disease, has a variety of negative effects on men. The pathogenesis of LPE has not been clarified, but it is believed to be related to the regulation of 5-HT and the 5-HT1a and 5-HT2c receptors from the perspective of the theory of 5-HT system neurotransmitter disorder. Current studies indicate that the 5-HT transporter gene-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR), 5-HT1a receptor gene polymorphism and 5-HT2c receptor gene polymorphism may be associated with the development of and drug effect on LPE. This article reviews the current studies on the development of LPE, effects of medication and 5-HT system gene polymorphism, and discusses the correlation of 5-HT system gene polymorphism with the development of LPE and effects of medication.

The OsSPK1-OsRac1-RAI1 defense signaling pathway is shared by two distantly related NLR proteins in rice blast resistance.

Resistance (R) proteins are important components of plant innate immunity. Most known R proteins are nucleotide-binding site leucine-rich repeat (NLR) proteins. Although a number of signaling components downstream of NLRs have been identified, we lack a general understanding of the signaling pathways. Here, we used the interaction between rice (Oryza sativa) and Magnaporthe oryzae to study signaling of rice NLRs in response to blast infection. We found that in blast resistance mediated by the NLR PIRICULARIA ORYZAE RESISTANCE IN DIGU 3 (PID3), the guanine nucleotide exchange factor OsSPK1 works downstream of PID3. OsSPK1 activates the small GTPase OsRac1, which in turn transduces the signal to the transcription factor RAC IMMUNITY1 (RAI1). Further investigation revealed that the three signaling components also play important roles in disease resistance mediated by the distantly related NLR protein Pi9, suggesting that the OsSPK1-OsRac1-RAI1 signaling pathway could be conserved across rice NLR-induced blast resistance. In addition, we observed changes in RAI1 levels during blast infection, which led to identification of OsRPT2a, a subunit of the 19S regulatory particle of the 26S proteasome. OsRPT2a seemed to be responsible for RAI1 turnover in a 26S proteasome-dependent manner. Collectively, our results suggest a defense signaling route that might be common to NLR proteins in response to blast infection.