Harnessing the power of microbes: Enhancing soybean growth in an acidic soil through AMF inoculation rather than P-fertilization.

The low phosphorus (P) availability of acidic soils severely limits leguminous plant growth and productivity. Improving the soil P nutritional status can be achieved by increasing the P-content through P-fertilization or stimulating the mineralization of organic P via arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) application; however, their corresponding impacts on plant and soil microbiome still remain to be explored. Here, we examined the effects of AMF-inoculation and P-fertilization on the growth of soybean with different P-efficiencies, as well as the composition of rhizo-microbiome in an acidic soil. The growth of recipient soybean NY-1001, which has a lower P-efficiency, was not significantly enhanced by AMF-inoculation or P-fertilization. However, the plant biomass of higher P-efficiency transgenic soybean PT6 was significantly increased by 46.74%-65.22% through AMF-inoculation. Although there was no discernible difference in plant biomass between PT6 and NY-1001 in the absence of AMF-inoculation and P-fertilization, PT6 had approximately 1.9-2.5 times the plant biomass of NY-1001 after AMF-inoculation. Therefore, the growth advantage of higher P-efficiency soybean was achieved through the assistance of AMF rather than P-fertilization in available P-deficient acidic soil. Most nitrogen (N)-fixing bacteria and some functional genes related to N-fixation were abundant in endospheric layer, as were the P-solubilizing Pseudomonas plecoglossicida, and annotated P-metabolism genes. These N-fixing and P-solubilizing bacteria were positive correlated with each other. Lastly, the two most abundant phytopathogenic fungi species accumulated in endospheric layer, they exhibited positive correlations with N-fixing bacteria, but displayed negative interactions with the majority of the other dominant non-pathogenic genera with potential antagonistic activity.

Phenotypic high-throughput screening identifies aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonism as common inhibitor of toxin-induced retinal pigment epithelium cell death.

The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is essential to maintain retinal function, and RPE cell death represents a key pathogenic stage in the progression of several blinding ocular diseases, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD). To identify pathways and compounds able to prevent RPE cell death, we developed a phenotypic screening pipeline utilizing a compound library and high-throughput screening compatible assays on the human RPE cell line, ARPE-19, in response to different disease relevant cytotoxic stimuli. We show that the metabolic by-product of the visual cycle all-trans-retinal (atRAL) induces RPE apoptosis, while the lipid peroxidation by-product 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) promotes necrotic cell death. Using these distinct stimuli for screening, we identified agonists of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) as a consensus target able to prevent both atRAL mediated apoptosis and 4-HNE-induced necrotic cell death. This works serves as a framework for future studies dedicated to screening for inhibitors of cell death, as well as support for the discussion of AhR agonism in RPE pathology.

Long-term efficacy of left bundle branch pacing and biventricular pacing in patients with heart failure complicated with left bundle branch block.

Background: Left bundle branch pacing (LBBP) can physiologically correct complete left bundle branch block (CLBBB), and has become the best alternative to biventricular pacing (BiVP). Objective: To compare the efficacy of LBBP and BiVP in patients with heart failure (HF) complicated with CLBBB. Methods: This was a single-center retrospective study. Patients with HF complicated with CLBBB who underwent successful cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in Wuhan Asian Heart Hospital from June 2018 to June 2023 were enrolled and divided into LBBP group and BiVP group according to the pacing method. The primary endpoints were the absolute increase of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD), and echocardiographic response rate. Secondary endpoints were all-cause mortality, heart failure hospitalization (HFH), NT-proBNP, paced QRS duration, pacing threshold, and procedural duration. Results: A total of 120 patients were enrolled in this study, including 60 patients in LBBP group and 60 patients in BiVP group. The median follow-up time was 37 ± 19 months. Compared with BiVP group, LBBP group had a more significant increase in absolute LVEF (ΔLVEF) (14.8 ± 9.9% vs. 10.7 ± 9.0%, P = 0.02), a more significant reduction in LVEDD (56.9 ± 10.9 mm vs. 61.1 ± 10.8 mm, P = 0.03), and a higher echocardiographic super response rate (65% vs. 45%, P = 0.02). There were no significant differences in all-cause mortality (1.7% vs. 10.0%, P = 0.11) and HFH (6.7% vs. 13.3%, P = 0.22). In terms of paced QRS duration (128.7 ± 14.1 ms vs. 137.5 ± 16.5 ms, P = 0.002), pacing threshold (0.72 ± 0.21 V/0.4 ms vs. 1.39 ± 0.51 V/0.4 ms, P < 0.001), procedural duration (134.1 ± 32.2 min vs. 147.7 ± 39.4 min, P = 0.04), the LBBP group was superior to the BiVP group. Conclusion: In nonischemic cardiomyopathy (NICM) patients with HF combined with CLBBB and LVEF ≤ 35%, LBBP is better than BiVP.

Effect of PVA Fiber on the Mechanical Properties of Seawater Coral Sand Engineered Cementitious Composites.

The physical and mechanical characteristics of seawater coral sand engineered cementitious composites (SCECC) were examined through uniaxial compression, three-point bending, and splitting tensile tests. The mechanical properties were scrutinized under varying fiber volume fraction conditions (V = 0%, 0.575%, 1.150%, 1.725%, and 2.300%). The experimental results indicated that the compressive strength, three-point bending strength, and split tensile strength of SCECC tended to increase with the rise in fiber volume fraction. The strengths attained their maximum values of 45.88, 12.56, and 3.03 MPa when the fiber volume fraction reached 2.300%. In the compression test, the compressive strength of the 7-day specimen can achieve more than 78.50% of that observed in the 28-day specimen. Three-point bending test has revealed that SCECC exhibits favorable strain-hardening and multi-crack cracking characteristics. Fracture patterns of SCECC exhibited variations corresponding to changes in fiber content, as illustrated by their load-deformation curves, the addition of PVA fibers can change the damage mode of cementitious composites from brittle to ductile. The fracture energy of SCECC further attests to its elevated toughness. This is due to the fact that the fibers delay the formation of microcracks and prevent crack expansion, thus significantly increasing the deformability of the material. By verifying its strength, deformability, fracture energy, and other key performance indicators, the feasibility of SCECC in coastal construction projects has been clarified. The successful development of SCECC provides an innovative and high-performance option for the construction of future island projects.

Record-Efficiency Printable Hole-Conductor-Free Mesoscopic Perovskite Solar Cells Enabled by the Multifunctional Schiff Base Derivative.

Tailoring multifunctional additives for performing interfacial modifications, improving crystallization, and passivating defects is instrumental for the fabrication of efficient and stable perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Here, a Schiff base derivative, (chloromethylene) dimethyliminium chloride (CDCl), is introduced as an additive to modify the interface between the mesoporous TiO2 electron transport layer and the MAPbI3 light absorber during the annealing process. CDCl chemically links to TiO2 and MAPbI3 through coordination and hydrogen bonding, respectively, and results in the construction of fast electron extraction channels. CDCl also optimizes the energy-level alignment of the TiO2/MAPbI3 heterojunction and improves the pore-filling and crystallization of MAPbI3 in the mesoscopic scaffold, which inhibits nonradiative recombination and eliminates open-circuit voltage losses. As a result, an impressive power conversion efficiency of 19.74%, which is the best one ever reported, is obtained for printable carbon-based hole-conductor-free PSCs based on MAPbI3.

Effect of repeated freeze-thaw cycles on mechanical properties of clay.

To investigate the variation in the mechanical properties of clay under freeze-thaw cycles (FTCs), a series of experiments were conducted in the laboratory. Samples with different water contents and dry densities were subjected to FTCs ranging from 0 to 11 times. Then, cohesion, shear strength, internal friction angle and elastic modulus were obtained using triaxial test. The results show that with the increase in the number of FTCs, the shear strength, cohesion and elastic modulus decreased, while the internal friction angle increased slightly. However, the variation in the internal friction angle is not obvious, and the maximum increment is within 4°. The cohesion exhibited the most decrease after the first freeze-thaw action. Besides, under a same number of FTCs, four mechanical properties are significantly affected by water content and dry density. The shear strength, cohesion, elastic modulus and internal friction angle decrease with water content while increasing with dry density. Additionally, the elastic modulus is associated with confining pressure, which increases with confining pressure. This study provides evidence for the variation in mechanical properties of the soils subjected to FTCs and guides the design and construction of the cold regional engineering.

Electron injection and defect passivation for high-efficiency mesoporous perovskite solar cells.

Printable mesoscopic perovskite solar cells (p-MPSCs) do not require the added hole-transport layer needed in traditional p-n junctions but have also exhibited lower power conversion efficiencies of about 19%. We performed device simulation and carrier dynamics analysis to design a p-MPSC with mesoporous layers of semiconducting titanium dioxide, insulating zirconium dioxide, and conducting carbon infiltrated with perovskite that enabled three-dimensional injection of photoexcited electrons into titanium dioxide for collection at a transparent conductor layer. Holes underwent long-distance diffusion toward the carbon back electrode, and this carrier separation reduced recombination at the back contact. Nonradiative recombination at the bulk titanium dioxide/perovskite interface was reduced by ammonium phosphate modification. The resulting p-MPSCs achieved a power conversion efficiency of 22.2% and maintained 97% of their initial efficiency after 750 hours of maximum power point tracking at 55 ± 5°C.

A modified natural small molecule inhibits triple-negative breast cancer growth by interacting with Tubb3.

BACKGROUND: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a malignant tumor without specific therapeutic targets and a poor prognosis. Chemotherapy is currently the first-line therapeutic option for TNBC. However, due to the heterogeneity of TNBC, not all of TNBC patients are responsive to chemotherapeutic agents. Therefore, the demand for new targeted agents is critical. ß-tubulin isotype III (Tubb3) is a prognostic factor associated with cancer progression, including breast cancer, and targeting Tubb3 may lead to improve TNBC disease control. Shikonin, the active compound in the roots of Lithospermun erythrorhizon suppresses the growth of various types of tumors, and its efficacy can be improved by altering its chemical structure. PURPOSE: In this work, the anti-TNBC effect of a shikonin derivative (PMMB276) was investigated, and its mechanism was also investigated. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS: This study combines flow cytometry, immunofluorescence staining, immunoblotting, immunoprecipitation, siRNA silencing, and the iTRAQ proteomics assay to analyze the inhibition potential of PMMB276 on TNBC. In vivo study was performed, Balb/c female murine models with or without the small molecule treatments. RESULTS: Herein, we screened 300 in-house synthesized analogs of shikonin against TNBC and identified a novel small molecule, PMMB276; it suppressed cell proliferation, induced apoptosis, and arrested the cell cycle at the G2/M phase, suggesting that it could have a tumor suppressive role in TNBC. Tubb3 was identified as the target of PMMB276 using proteomic and biological activity analyses. Meanwhile, PMMB276 regulated microtubule dynamics in vitro by inducing microtubule depolymerization and it could act as a tubulin stabilizer by a different process than that of paclitaxel. Moreover, suppressing or inhibiting Tubb3 with PMMB276 reduced the growth of breast cancer in an experimental mouse model, indicating that Tubb3 plays a significant role in TNBC progression. CONCLUSION: The findings support the therapeutic potential of PMMB276, a Tubb3 inhibitor, as a treatment for TNBC. Our findings might serve as a foundation for the utilization of shikonin and its derivatives in the development of anti-TNBC.

Removal of Mixed Noise in Hyperspectral Images Based on Subspace Representation and Nonlocal Low-Rank Tensor Decomposition.

Hyperspectral images (HSIs) contain abundant spectral and spatial structural information, but they are inevitably contaminated by a variety of noises during data reception and transmission, leading to image quality degradation and subsequent application hindrance. Hence, removing mixed noise from hyperspectral images is an important step in improving the performance of subsequent image processing. It is a well-established fact that the data information of hyperspectral images can be effectively represented by a global spectral low-rank subspace due to the high redundancy and correlation (RAC) in the spatial and spectral domains. Taking advantage of this property, a new algorithm based on subspace representation and nonlocal low-rank tensor decomposition is proposed to filter the mixed noise of hyperspectral images. The algorithm first obtains the subspace representation of the hyperspectral image by utilizing the spectral low-rank property and obtains the orthogonal basis and representation coefficient image (RCI). Then, the representation coefficient image is grouped and denoised using tensor decomposition and wavelet decomposition, respectively, according to the spatial nonlocal self-similarity. Afterward, the orthogonal basis and denoised representation coefficient image are optimized using the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM). Finally, iterative regularization is used to update the image to obtain the final denoised hyperspectral image. Experiments on both simulated and real datasets demonstrate that the algorithm proposed in this paper is superior to related mainstream methods in both quantitative metrics and intuitive vision. Because it is denoising for image subspace, the time complexity is greatly reduced and is lower than related denoising algorithms in terms of computational cost.

Printable Counter Electrode with Metal Nitride as the Conductive Medium for Perovskite Solar Cells.

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with a booming high power conversion efficiency (PCE) are on their road toward industrialization. A proper design of the counter electrode (CE) with low cost, high conductivity, chemical stability, and good interface contact with the other functional layer atop the perovskite layer is vital for the overall performance of PSCs. Herein, the application of titanium nitride (TiN) is reported as a conductive medium for the printable CE in hole-conductor-free mesoscopic PSCs. TiN improves the conductivity of the CE and reduces the resistivity from 20 to 10 mΩ∙cm. TiN also improves the wettability of the CE with perovskite and enhances the back interface contact, which promotes charge collection. On the other hand, TiN is chemically stable during processing and undergoes no distinguishable chemical reaction with halide perovskite. Devices with TiN as the conductive media in the CE deliver a champion PCE of 19.01%. This work supplies a considerable choice for the CE design of PSCs toward industrial applications.

Genome-Wide Characterization of Tomato FAD Gene Family and Expression Analysis under Abiotic Stresses.

The fatty acid desaturase (FAD) gene family plays a crucial regulatory role in the resistance process of plant biomembranes. To understand the role of FADs in tomato growth and development, this study identified and analyzed the tomato FAD gene family based on bioinformatics analysis methods. In this study, 26 SlFADs were unevenly distributed on 10 chromosomes. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the SlFAD gene family was divided into six branches, and the exon-intron composition and conserved motifs of SlFADs clustered in the same branch were quite conservative. Several hormone and stress response elements in the SlFAD promoter suggest that the expression of SlFAD members is subject to complex regulation; the construction of a tomato FAD protein interaction network found that SlFAD proteins have apparent synergistic effects with SPA and GPAT proteins. qRT-PCR verification results show that SlFAD participates in the expression of tomato root, stem, and leaf tissues; SlFAD8 is mainly highly expressed in leaves; SlFAD9 plays a vital role in response to salt stress; and SlFAB5 regulates all stages of fruit development under the action of exogenous hormones. In summary, this study provides a basis for a systematic understanding of the SlFAD gene family. It provides a theoretical basis for in-depth research on the functional characteristics of tomato SlFAD genes.

Predictive value of coronary artery computed tomography-derived fractional flow reserve for cardiovascular events in patients with coronary artery disease.

BACKGROUND: Coronary computed tomography-derived fractional flow reserve (FFR-CT) assesses whether coronary artery lesions will result in myocardial ischemia. This study aimed to evaluate the predictive value of FFR-CT for cardiovascular events in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS: Data were collected retrospectively from patients with CAD who underwent FFR-CT at our hospital from January 2020 to February 2022 (1-year average follow-up). Patients were divided into ischemic (FFR-CT ≤ 0.80) and non-ischemic (FFR-CT > 0.80) groups. The incidence of endpoint events (cardiac death, acute myocardial infarction, unplanned revascularization, unstable angina, and stable angina) was calculated. The FFR-CT value was correlated with endpoint events using Cox regression models and Kaplan-Meier survival curves. RESULTS: We recruited 134 patients (93 [69.4%] and 41 [30.6%] patients in the ischemic and non-ischemic groups, respectively). The ischemic group had a higher proportion of men, patients with type 2 diabetes and hypertension, and patients taking antiplatelet drugs and ß­blockers than did the non-ischemic group (all p < 0.05), whereas other parameters were comparable. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed no significant differences in cardiac death, acute myocardial infarction, unplanned revascularization, and unstable angina between the groups. The incidence of stable angina events (hazard ratio: 3.092, 95% confidence interval: 1.362-7.022, p = 0.007) was significantly higher in the ischemic group. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed a significant difference in event-free survival for stable angina between the groups (p = 0.002). CONCLUSION: In patients with CAD, FFR-CT showed an independent predictive value for stable angina within 1 year of examination.

Dimension Tuning of All-Inorganic Ag-Based Metal Halides by Solvent Engineering.

Dimension growth of metal halides is important for its properties and applications. However, such dimension control of the metal halides is rarely reported in the literature and the growth mechanism is not clear yet. A minute difference of solvent properties can tremendously alter the process of nucleation and growth of crystals. Herein, an intriguing phenomenon of dimension tuning for Ag-based metal halides is reported. The 1D Cs2 AgCl3 crystals can be obtained in pure DMF while the 2D CsAgCl2 crystals are obtained in pure DMSO. Both exhibit bright yellow emission, which are derived from self-trapping excitons (STEs). The photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of Cs2 AgCl3 (1D) and CsAgCl2 (2D) are 28.46 % and 20.61 %, respectively. In order to understand the mechanism of the dimension change, additional solvents (N,N-dimethylacetamide, DMAC, 1,3-Dimethyl-Tetrahydropyrimidin-2(1H)-one, DMPU) are also selected to process the precursor for crystal growth. By comparing the functional group, dielectric constant, and donor number among the four solvents, we find the donor number plays the predominant role in nucleation process for Cs2 AgCl3 and CsAgCl2 . This research reveals the relationship between coordination ability of the solvent and the dimension of metal halides.

Laboratory scoring system to predict hepatic indocyanine green clearance ability during fluorescence imaging-guided laparoscopic hepatectomy.

BACKGROUND: Indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence played an important role in tumor localization and margin delineation in hepatobiliary surgery. However, the preoperative regimen of ICG administration was still controversial. Factors associated with tumor fluorescence staining effect were unclear. AIM: To investigate the preoperative laboratory indexes corelated with ICG fluorescence staining effect and establish a novel laboratory scoring system to screen specifical patients who need ICG dose adjustment. METHODS: To investigate the predictive indicators of ICG fluorescence characteristics in patients undergoing laparoscopic hepatectomy from January 2018 to January 2021 were included. Blood laboratory tests were completed within 1 wk before surgery. All patients received 5 mg ICG injection 24 h before surgery for preliminary tumor imaging. ImageJ software was used to measure the fluorescence intensity values of regions of interest. Correlation analysis was used to identify risk factors. A laboratory risk model was established to identify individuals at high risk for high liver background fluorescence. RESULTS: There were 110 patients who were enrolled in this study from January 2019 to January 2021. The mean values of fluorescence intensity of liver background (FI-LB), fluorescence intensity of gallbladder, and fluorescence intensity of target area were 18.87 ± 17.06, 54.84 ± 33.29, and 68.56 ± 36.11, respectively. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed that FI-LB was a good indicator for liver clearance ability [area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.984]. Correlation analysis found pre-operative aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, adenosine deaminase, and lactate dehydrogenase were positively associated with FI-LB and red blood cell, cholinesterase, and were negatively associated with FI-LB. Total laboratory risk score (TLRS) was calculated according to ROC curve (AUC = 0.848, sensitivity = 0.773, specificity = 0.885). When TLRS was greater than 6.5, the liver clearance ability of ICG was considered as poor. CONCLUSION: Preoperative laboratory blood indicators can predict hepatic ICG clearance ability. Surgeons can adjust the dose and timing of ICG preoperatively to achieve better liver fluorescent staining.

Effects of acid modified biochar on potassium uptake, leaching and balance in an alternate wetting and drying paddy ecosystem.

Straw biochar amended soils reduce fertilizer losses and alleviate soil K-exhaustion, while decrease grain yield due to its high pH. H2SO4-modified biochar has been studied as a means to enhance the advantages of biochar and address yield decrease. However, little information is available on its effects on aboveground K uptake, soil K fixation, K leaching, and utilization in paddy rice systems, especially under water stress. A 3-year field experiment was conducted with two irrigation regimes (continuously flooded irrigation, ICF and alternate wetting and drying irrigation, IAWD) as main plots and 0 (control), 20 t ha-1 biochar (B20), and 20 t ha-1 acid-modified biochar (B20A-M) as subplots. The results showed that IAWD significantly decreased water percolation by 9.26 %-14.74 % but increased K leaching by 10.84 %-15.66 %. Compared to B0, B20 and B20A-M significantly increased K leaching by 32.40 % and 30.42 % in 2019, while decreased it by 11.60 %-14.01 % in 2020 and 2021. Both B20 and B20A-M significantly improved aboveground K uptake by 3.45 %-6.71 % throughout the three years. B20 reduced grain yield in 2019 and increased it in 2020 and 2021, while B20A-M increased grain yield throughout the three years. Apparent K balance (AKB) from pre-transplanting to post-harvest over the three years suggested that IAWD significantly increased the risk of soil K depletion but B20 and B20A-M significantly increased AKB, thereby addressing the depletion of it. IAWDB20A-M have a comparable AKB with ICFB20A-M, but had up to 18.3 % and 21.61 % higher AKB than IAWDB20 and ICFB20. Therefore, the use of H2SO4 modified biochar could produce higher grain yield with lower K leaching for addition in IAWD paddy systems, which is beneficial to mitigate soil K depletion and ensure a sustainable agricultural production.

Genome-Wide Comparison and Functional Characterization of HMGR Gene Family Associated with Shikonin Biosynthesis in Lithospermum erythrorhizon.

3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR), as the rate-limiting enzyme in the mevalonate pathway, is essential for the biosynthesis of shikonin in Lithospermum erythrorhizon. However, in the absence of sufficient data, the principles of a genome-wide in-depth evolutionary exploration of HMGR family members in plants, as well as key members related to shikonin biosynthesis, remain unidentified. In this study, 124 HMGRs were identified and characterized from 36 representative plants, including L. erythrorhizon. Vascular plants were found to have more HMGR family genes than nonvascular plants. The phylogenetic tree revealed that during lineage and species diversification, the HMGRs evolved independently and intronless LerHMGRs emerged from multi-intron HMGR in land plants. Among them, Pinus tabuliformis and L. erythrorhizon had the most HMGR gene duplications, with 11 LerHMGRs most likely expanded through WGD/segmental and tandem duplications. In seedling roots and M9 cultured cells/hairy roots, where shikonin biosynthesis occurs, LerHMGR1 and LerHMGR2 were expressed significantly more than other genes. The enzymatic activities of LerHMGR1 and LerHMGR2 further supported their roles in catalyzing the conversion of HMG-CoA to mevalonate. Our findings provide insight into the molecular evolutionary properties and function of the HMGR family in plants and a basis for the genetic improvement of efficiently produced secondary metabolites in L. erythrorhizon.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel modified dual-target shikonin derivatives for colorectal cancer treatment.

Warburg effect provides energy and material essential for tumor proliferation, the reverse of Warburg effect provides insights into the development of a novel anti-cancer strategy. Pyruvate kinase 2 (PKM2) and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDK1) are two key enzymes in tumor glucose metabolism pathway that not only contribute to the Warburg effect through accelerating aerobic glycolysis, but also serve as druggable target for colorectal cancer (CRC). Considering that targeting PKM2 or PDK1 alone does not seem to be sufficient to remodel abnormal glucose metabolism and achieve significant antitumor activity, a series of novel benzenesulfonyl shikonin derivatives were designed to regulate PKM2 and PDK1 simultaneously. By means of molecular docking and antiproliferative screen, we found that compound Z10 could act as the combination of PKM2 activator and PDK1 inhibitor, thereby significantly inhibited glycolysis that reshaping tumor metabolism. Moreover, Z10 could inhibit proliferation, migration and induce apoptosis in CRC cell HCT-8. Finally, the in vivo anti-tumor activity of Z10 was evaluated in a colorectal cancer cell xenograft model in nude mice and the results demonstrated that Z10 induced tumor cell apoptosis and inhibited tumor cell proliferation with lower toxicity than shikonin. Our findings indicated that it is feasible to alter tumor energy metabolism through multi-target synergies, and the dual-target benzenesulfonyl shikonin derivative Z10 could be a potential anti-CRC agent.

Chromosome-Level Genome Assembly and Population Genomic Analyses Reveal Geographic Variation and Population Genetic Structure of Prunus tenella.

Prunus tenella is a rare and precious relict plant in China. It is an important genetic resource for almond improvement and an indispensable material in ecological protection and landscaping. However, the research into molecular breeding and genetic evolution has been severely restricted due to the lack of genome information. In this investigation, we created a chromosome-level genomic pattern of P. tenella, 231 Mb in length with a contig N50 of 18.1 Mb by Hi-C techniques and high-accuracy PacBio HiFi sequencing. The present assembly predicted 32,088 protein-coding genes, and an examination of the genome assembly indicated that 94.7% among all assembled transcripts were alignable to the genome assembly; most (97.24%) were functionally annotated. By phylogenomic genome comparison, we found that P. tenella is an ancient group that diverged approximately 13.4 million years ago (mya) from 13 additional closely related species and about 6.5 Mya from the cultivated almond. Collinearity analysis revealed that P. tenella is highly syntenic and has high sequence conservation with almond and peach. However, this species also exhibits many presence/absence variants. Moreover, a large inversion at the 7588 kb position of chromosome 5 was observed, which may have a significant association with phenotypic traits. Lastly, population genetic structure analysis in eight different populations indicated a high genetic differentiation among the natural distribution of P. tenella. This high-quality genome assembly provides critical clues and comprehensive information for the systematic evolution, genetic characteristics, and functional gene research of P. tenella. Moreover, it provides a valuable genomic resource for in-depth study in protection, developing, and utilizing P. tenella germplasm resources.

Exogenous selenium promotes the growth of salt-stressed tomato seedlings by regulating ionic homeostasis, activation energy allocation and CO2 assimilation.

This study is aimed at investigating the effects of exogenous selenium (Se) on the ionic equilibrium and micro-domain distribution, state transitions between photosystem I (PSI) and photosystem II (PSII), and the photosynthetic carbon assimilation efficiency of tomato (Solanum lycopersicon L.) seedlings under the influence of salt stress. The application of 0.01 mmol•L-1 exogenous Se had no significant effects on the selective transport capacity of sodium (Na), potassium (K), calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) from the roots to leaves under salt stress. It, however, significantly hindered the absorption of Na by the root system and leaves, increased the ratios of K/Na, Ca/Na and Mg/Na, and relieved the nonuniformity of micro-domain ionic distribution, thus, mitigating the ionic homeostasis imbalance and ion toxicity induced by salt stress. Additionally, the application of exogenous Se overcame stomatal limitation, regulated the state transitions between PSI and PSII, and enhanced the initial and overall activity of Rubisco as well as the activities of Rubisco activase (RCA) and fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase). It also increased the levels of expression of nine relevant genes in Calvin cycle, which subsequently improved the concentration of photosynthetic substrates, balanced the distribution of activation energy between PSI and PSII, promoted the efficiency of CO2 carboxylation and carbon assimilation, thereby increasing the photosynthetic efficiency of tomato seedling leaves under salt stress. Hence, the supply of exogenous Se can alleviate the inhibition of salt stress on tomato seedling growth by rebuilding ionic homeostasis and promoting photosynthetic capacity.

Early Detection and Staging of Lung Fibrosis Enabled by Collagen-Targeted MRI Protein Contrast Agent.

Chronic lung diseases, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), are major leading causes of death worldwide and are generally associated with poor prognoses. The heterogeneous distribution of collagen, mainly type I collagen associated with excessive collagen deposition, plays a pivotal role in the progressive remodeling of the lung parenchyma to chronic exertional dyspnea for both IPF and COPD. To address the pressing need for noninvasive early diagnosis and drug treatment monitoring of pulmonary fibrosis, we report the development of human collagen-targeted protein MRI contrast agent (hProCA32.collagen) to specifically bind to collagen I overexpressed in multiple lung diseases. When compared to clinically approved Gd3+ contrast agents, hProCA32.collagen exhibits significantly better r1 and r2 relaxivity values, strong metal binding affinity and selectivity, and transmetalation resistance. Here, we report the robust detection of early and late-stage lung fibrosis with stage-dependent MRI signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) increase, with good sensitivity and specificity, using a progressive bleomycin-induced IPF mouse model. Spatial heterogeneous mapping of usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) patterns with key features closely mimicking human IPF, including cystic clustering, honeycombing, and traction bronchiectasis, were noninvasively detected by multiple MR imaging techniques and verified by histological correlation. We further report the detection of fibrosis in the lung airway of an electronic cigarette-induced COPD mouse model, using hProCA32.collagen-enabled precision MRI (pMRI), and validated by histological analysis. The developed hProCA32.collagen is expected to have strong translational potential for the noninvasive detection and staging of lung diseases, and facilitating effective treatment to halt further chronic lung disease progression.