BiPSTP: Sequence feature encoding method for identifying different RNA modifications with bidirectional position-specific trinucleotides propensities.

RNA modification, a posttranscriptional regulatory mechanism, significantly influences RNA biogenesis and function. The accurate identification of modification sites is paramount for investigating their biological implications. Methods for encoding RNA sequence into numerical data play a crucial role in developing robust models for predicting modification sites. However, existing techniques suffer from limitations, including inadequate information representation, challenges in effectively integrating positional and sequential information, and the generation of irrelevant or redundant features when combining multiple approaches. These deficiencies hinder the effectiveness of machine learning models in addressing the performance challenges associated with predicting RNA modification sites. Here, we introduce a novel RNA sequence feature representation method, named BiPSTP, which utilizes bidirectional trinucleotide position-specific propensities. We employ the parameter ξ to denote the interval between the current nucleotide and its adjacent forward or backward dinucleotide, enabling the extraction of positional and sequential information from RNA sequences. Leveraging the BiPSTP method, we have developed the prediction model mRNAPred using support vector machine classifier to identify multiple types of RNA modification sites. We evaluate the performance of our BiPSTP method and mRNAPred model across 12 distinct RNA modification types. Our experimental results demonstrate the superiority of the mRNAPred model compared to state-of-art models in the domain of RNA modification sites identification. Importantly, our BiPSTP method enhances the robustness and generalization performance of prediction models. Notably, it can be applied to feature extraction from DNA sequences to predict other biological modification sites.

Genome Survey Sequencing of the Mole Cricket Gryllotalpa orientalis.

The mole cricket Gryllotalpa orientalis is an evolutionarily, medicinal, and agriculturally significant insect that inhabits underground environments and is distributed globally. This study measured genome size by flow cytometry and k-mer based on low-coverage sequencing, and nuclear repetitive elements were also identified. The haploid genome size estimate is 3.14 Gb by flow cytometry, 3.17 Gb, and 3.77 Gb-based two k-mer methods, respectively, which is well within the range previously reported for other species of the suborder Ensifera. 56% of repetitive elements were found in G. orientalis, similar to 56.83% in Locusta migratoria. However, the great size of repetitive sequences could not be annotated to specific repeat element families. For the repetitive elements that were annotated, Class I-LINE retrotransposon elements were the most common families and more abundant than satellite and Class I-LTR. These results based on the newly developed genome survey could be used in the taxonomic study and whole genome sequencing to improve the understanding of the biology of G. orientalis.

The Chromosome-Level Genome of Hestina assimilis (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) Reveals the Evolution of Saprophagy-Related Genes in Brush-Footed Butterflies.

Most butterflies feed on nectar, while some saprophagous butterflies forage on various non-nectar foods. To date, little is known about the genomic and molecular shifts associated with the evolution of the saprophagous feeding strategy. Here, we assembled the high-quality chromosome-level genome of Hestina assimilis to explore its saprophagous molecular and genetic mechanisms. This chromosome-level genome of H. assimilis is 412.82 Mb, with a scaffold N50 of 15.70 Mb. In total, 98.11% of contigs were anchored to 30 chromosomes. Compared with H. assimilis and other Nymphalidae butterflies, the genes of metabolism and detoxification experienced expansions. We annotated 80 cytochrome P450 (CYP) genes in the H. assimilis genome, among which genes belonging to the CYP4 subfamily were significantly expanded (p < 0.01). These P450 genes were unevenly distributed and mainly concentrated on chromosomes 6-9. We identified 33 olfactory receptor (OR), 20 odorant-binding protein (OBP), and six gustatory receptor (GR) genes in the H. assimilis genome, which were fewer than in the nectarivorous Danaus plexippus. A decreased number of OBP, OR, and GR genes implied that H. assimilis should resort less to olfaction and gustation than their nectarivorous counterparts, which need highly specialized olfactory and gustatory functions. Moreover, we found one site under positive selection occurred in residue 996 (phenylalanine) of GR genes exclusive to H. assimilis, which is conservative in most lineages. Our study provides support for the adaptive evolution of feeding habits in butterflies.

De Novo Assembly and Characterization of the Transcriptome of an Omnivorous Camel Cricket (Tachycines meditationis).

Tachycines meditationis (Orthoptera: Rhaphidophoridae: Tachycines) is a widely distributed insect in eastern Asia. This species is common in urban environments, and its unique omnivorous diet may contribute to its success in various habitats. However, molecular studies on the species are scarce. Here, we obtained the first transcriptome sequence of T. meditationis and performed preliminary analyses to test whether the evolution of coding sequences fits the expectations based on the species' ecology. We retrieved 476,495 effective transcripts and annotated 46,593 coding sequences (CDS). We analysed the codon usage and found that directional mutation pressure was the leading cause of codon usage bias in this species. This genome-wide relaxed codon usage pattern in T. meditationis is surprising, given the potentially large population size of this species. Moreover, despite the omnivorous diet, the chemosensory genes of this species do not exhibit codon usage deviating significantly from the genome-level pattern. They also do not seem to experience more gene family expansion than other cave cricket species do. A thorough search for rapidly evolved genes using the dN/dS value showed that genes associated with substance synthesis and metabolic pathways, such as retinol metabolism, aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis, and fatty acid metabolism, underwent species-specific positive selection. While some results seem to contradict the species ecology, our transcriptome assembly provides a valuable molecular resource for future studies on camel cricket evolution and molecular genetics for feeding ecology in insects, in general.

Evolution of Gene Arrangements in the Mitogenomes of Ensifera and Characterization of the Complete Mitogenome of Schizodactylus jimo.

Gene arrangement (relative location of genes) is another evolutionary marker of the mitogenome that can provide extensive information on the evolutionary mechanism. To explore the evolution of gene arrangements in the mitogenome of diversified Ensifera, we sequenced the mitogenome of the unique dune cricket species found in China and used it for phylogenetic analysis, in combination with 84 known Ensiferan mitogenomes. The mitogenome of Schizodactylus jimo is a 16,428-bp circular molecule that contains 37 genes. We identified eight types of gene arrangement in the 85 ensiferan mitogenomes. The gene location changes (i.e., gene translocation and duplication) were in three gene blocks: I-Q-M-ND2, rrnl-rns-V, and ND3-A-R-N-S-E-F. From the phylogenetic tree, we found that Schizodactylus jimo and most other species share a typical and ancient gene arrangement type (Type I), while Grylloidea has two types (Types II and III), and the other five types are rare and scattered in the phylogenetic tree. We deduced that the tandem replication-random loss model is the evolutionary mechanism of gene arrangements in Ensifera. Selection pressure analysis revealed that purifying selection dominated the evolution of the ensiferan mitochondrial genome. This study suggests that most gene rearrangements in the ensiferan mitogenome are rare accidental events.

Injection Injury Caused by Disinfectant During COVID-19: A Case Report.

High-pressure injection injury of the hand is a rare but severe emergency, which requires full attention and timely treatment. However, the early symptoms may not be obvious. As the swelling and necrosis progress, the condition gradually worsens, and in severe cases, it may end with amputation. We report a particular case of a hand injection injury, which occurred to a worker who worked overtime to produce disinfectant during the Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic. Because of the chemical toxicity of the disinfectant and pressure's damage, although the emergency debridement was promptly performed, we still lost some fingers in the end. In the existing disinfection product manuals, we have not seen any tips on dealing with tissue injection injury. It may reduce workers' attention to injuries, leading to delays in emergency operations.

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells alleviate the formation of pathological scars in rats.

Introduction: Although bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have attracted increasing attention because of their pivotal functions in the process of wound healing and fibrosis alleviation, the underlying molecular mechanisms have been poorly understood. Moreover, transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-ß1) is positively correlated with scar formation, whereas TGF-ß3 inhibits the pathological scar formation process. However, the relation of TGF-ß1, TGF-ß3, and the TGF-ß/Smad signaling pathway with BMSCs is unknown and requires further investigation. Methods: A cell co-culture platform was used to examine the relationship between BMSCs and dermal fibroblasts (DFs). EdU labelling and cell cycle detection were carried out to examine the viability of DF cells. Transwell and wound healing assays were used to test the cell migration of DFs. The expression of TGF-ß pathway components and collagens were determined by RT-qPCR and western blotting. A damaged skin rat model was applied to test the effects of BMSC treatment on skin wound healing. Results: The results showed that BMSC secretion could inhibit the viability and migration of DFs. Moreover, we observed that the TGF-ß-induced expression of TGF-ß1, Smad2, Smad3, COLI and COLIII was attenuated upon BMSC treatment in DFs, while the decrease in TGF-ß3 expression was enhanced by BMSCs. Furthermore, BMSC treatment accelerated wound healing and attenuated skin collagen deposition in a damaged skin rat model, leading to the mitigation of cell proliferation and enhancement of cell apoptosis. In addition, the expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), COLI, and COLII was alleviated by BMSC treatment. Conclusions: Our results indicate that BMSCs can promote wound healing and inhibit skin collagen deposition, which is associated with the TGF-ß/Smad signaling pathway.

The Comparison of Gut Bacteria Communities and the Functions Among the Sympatric Grasshopper Species From the Loess Plateau.

Gut bacteria exert effects on the health and fitness of their insect hosts. Grasshoppers are an important part of the grassland ecosystem and provide important ecosystem services. As the most valuable feature in grassland ecosystem, the compositions and potential influences of gut bacterial in herbivorous grasshoppers in the same ecological environment are essential but undetermined. To facilitate such studies, we collected nine species of grasshoppers (n = 110) from a rebuild grassland on the Loess Plateau in northern Shaanxi, China, which is a representative area of ecosystem restoration model. We characterized the composition and function of the gut bacteria. We found that 326 OTUs were exhibited in all grasshoppers in which Enterobacter, Pantoea, Bacillus, and Spiroplsma are dominant. Among them, 18 OTUs were shared across all nine species of grasshoppers. The predicted function showed that the majority function of those OTUs were involved in survival dependent processes including membrane transport, carbohydrate metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and DNA replication and repair. The composition of gut bacteria is specific to each grasshopper species, and the bacteria community is most various in Trilophidia annulata. These results highlight the gut bacterial community diversity in different grasshopper species. Our findings are necessary for better understanding the relationships between this important herbivorous insect and their microbiomes and have the potential contribution of evaluating the revegetation and ecosystem management in this area.

Description of three new species of Gomphomastacinae (Orthoptera: Eumastacoidea) from the east of Qinghai-Tibet plateau, China.

The grasshopper Subfamily Gomphomastacinae (Orthoptera: Acridoidea: Eumastacidae) is widely distributed in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and Central Asia. This paper describes three new species: Ptygomastax nihilsulcus Ge, sp. nov. Phytomastax pentaspinula Ge, sp. nov. and Pentaspinula unispinula Ge, sp. nov. of the subfamily from the eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, along with an updated identification key of species of the related genera. Detail figures of the body and genitalia of the new species are also provided.

Genome Size Estimation and Full-Length Transcriptome of Sphingonotus tsinlingensis: Genetic Background of a Drought-Adapted Grasshopper.

Sphingonotus Fieber, 1852 (Orthoptera: Acrididae), is a grasshopper genus comprising approximately 170 species, all of which prefer dry environments such as deserts, steppes, and stony benchlands. In this study, we aimed to examine the adaptation of grasshopper species to arid environments. The genome size of Sphingonotus tsinlingensis was estimated using flow cytometry, and the first high-quality full-length transcriptome of this species was produced. The genome size of S. tsinlingensis is approximately 12.8 Gb. Based on 146.98 Gb of PacBio sequencing data, 221.47 Mb full-length transcripts were assembled. Among these, 88,693 non-redundant isoforms were identified with an N50 value of 2,726 bp, which was markedly longer than previous grasshopper transcriptome assemblies. In total, 48,502 protein-coding sequences were identified, and 37,569 were annotated using public gene function databases. Moreover, 36,488 simple tandem repeats, 12,765 long non-coding RNAs, and 414 transcription factors were identified. According to gene functions, 61 cytochrome P450 (CYP450) and 66 heat shock protein (HSP) genes, which may be associated with drought adaptation of S. tsinlingensis, were identified. We compared the transcriptomes of S. tsinlingensis and two other grasshopper species which were less tolerant to drought, namely Mongolotettix japonicus and Gomphocerus licenti. We observed the expression of CYP450 and HSP genes in S. tsinlingensis were higher. We produced the first full-length transcriptome of a Sphingonotus species that has an ultra-large genome. The assembly characteristics were better than those of all known grasshopper transcriptomes. This full-length transcriptome may thus be used to understand the genetic background and evolution of grasshoppers.

M6A-BiNP: predicting N6-methyladenosine sites based on bidirectional position-specific propensities of polynucleotides and pointwise joint mutual information.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) plays an important role in various biological processes. Identifying m6A site is a key step in exploring its biological functions. One of the biggest challenges in identifying m6A sites is how to extract features comprising rich categorical information to distinguish m6A and non-m6A sites. To address this challenge, we propose bidirectional dinucleotide and trinucleotide position-specific propensities, respectively, in this paper. Based on this, we propose two feature-encoding algorithms: Position-Specific Propensities and Pointwise Mutual Information (PSP-PMI) and Position-Specific Propensities and Pointwise Joint Mutual Information (PSP-PJMI). PSP-PMI is based on the bidirectional dinucleotide propensity and the pointwise mutual information, while PSP-PJMI is based on the bidirectional trinucleotide position-specific propensity and the proposed pointwise joint mutual information in this paper. We introduce parameters α and ß in PSP-PMI and PSP-PJMI, respectively, to represent the distance from the nucleotide to its forward or backward adjacent nucleotide or dinucleotide, so as to extract features containing local and global classification information. Finally, we propose the M6A-BiNP predictor based on PSP-PMI or PSP-PJMI and SVM classifier. The 10-fold cross-validation experimental results on the benchmark datasets of non-single-base resolution and single-base resolution demonstrate that PSP-PMI and PSP-PJMI can extract features with strong capabilities to identify m6A and non-m6A sites. The M6A-BiNP predictor based on our proposed feature encoding algorithm PSP-PJMI is better than the state-of-the-art predictors, and it is so far the best model to identify m6A and non-m6A sites.

The Unsupervised Feature Selection Algorithms Based on Standard Deviation and Cosine Similarity for Genomic Data Analysis.

To tackle the challenges in genomic data analysis caused by their tens of thousands of dimensions while having a small number of examples and unbalanced examples between classes, the technique of unsupervised feature selection based on standard deviation and cosine similarity is proposed in this paper. We refer to this idea as SCFS (Standard deviation and Cosine similarity based Feature Selection). It defines the discernibility and independence of a feature to value its distinguishable capability between classes and its redundancy to other features, respectively. A 2-dimensional space is constructed using discernibility as x-axis and independence as y-axis to represent all features where the upper right corner features have both comparatively high discernibility and independence. The importance of a feature is defined as the product of its discernibility and its independence (i.e., the area of the rectangular enclosed by the feature's coordinate lines and axes). The upper right corner features are by far the most important, comprising the optimal feature subset. Based on different definitions of independence using cosine similarity, there are three feature selection algorithms derived from SCFS. These are SCEFS (Standard deviation and Exponent Cosine similarity based Feature Selection), SCRFS (Standard deviation and Reciprocal Cosine similarity based Feature Selection) and SCAFS (Standard deviation and Anti-Cosine similarity based Feature Selection), respectively. The KNN and SVM classifiers are built based on the optimal feature subsets detected by these feature selection algorithms, respectively. The experimental results on 18 genomic datasets of cancers demonstrate that the proposed unsupervised feature selection algorithms SCEFS, SCRFS and SCAFS can detect the stable biomarkers with strong classification capability. This shows that the idea proposed in this paper is powerful. The functional analysis of these biomarkers show that the occurrence of the cancer is closely related to the biomarker gene regulation level. This fact will benefit cancer pathology research, drug development, early diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

A synoptic review of Gomphomastacinae (Orthoptera: Eumastacoidea) from the Qinghai-Tibet plateau with a description of new species.

With unique climate, topography, and vegetation, the Qinghai-Tibet plateau is a special biogeographic region with richness of endemic species. However, the taxonomy and distribution of many insect groups on this plateau are still poorly known. Here, we synthesized a species checklist of subfamily Gomphomastacinae (Orthoptera: Acridoidea: Eumastacidae) for this region, while describing a new species: Myrmeleomastax wideis Qiu, sp. nov.. Images of the new species and the distribution map of all the known species are provided. Type specimens for the new species are deposited in the Zoological and Botanical Museum, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China (SNNU).

Description of Heteracris lecoqi Yetchom-Fondjo amp; Kekeunou sp. nov. and Heteracris hannai Wandji amp; Kekeunou sp. nov. and redescription of Heteracris guineensis (Krauss, 1890) (Orthoptera: Acrididae) with comments on its ecology in the Southern part of Cameroon.

The specimens studied were collected with sweep net and pitfall in the forests, agro-forests, herbaceous fallows, and crop fields of 14 localities in the southern part of Cameroon, from August 2015 to February 2018. The results show that Heteracris hannai sp. nov. and Heteracris lecoqi sp. nov. differ from previously known species of the same genus by the pattern of coloration and the details or shape of the phallic complex. H. lecoqi sp. nov. is characterized by light brownish body; male cercus with flattened, downcurved and obtuse apex; lophus strongly curved; interlophal space with V shape; apodeme of cingulum bow, convergent, with V-shape; valve of cingulum in lateral view longer than apical valve of penis; ramus in ventral view joined. H. hannai sp. nov. is distinct to other species by brown to grey body; male cercus with apex rounded, curved inside; lophus curved; interlophal space with U-shape; apodeme of cingulum thick, slightly parallel, with U shape; valve of cingulum in lateral view hardly longer than apical valve of penis; ramus in ventral view opened. The characteristics of H. guineensis are closer to H. hannai sp. nov. than to H. lecoqi sp. nov. H. lecoqi sp. nov. was collected only in the fallows while H. hannai sp. nov. was collected in the forests, agro-forests, fallows, and crop fields. Compared to H. guineensis, both new species are scarce in the natural vegetation and their distribution area is limited to two and four localities respectively for H. lecoqi sp. nov. and H. hannai sp. nov. All these three grasshopper's species were recorded as accidental species in all types of vegetation.

Improved tendon healing by a combination of Tanshinone IIA and miR-29b inhibitor treatment through preventing tendon adhesion and enhancing tendon strength.

Background: Despite significant advances in the materials and methods development used in surgical repair and postoperative rehabilitation, the adhesion formation remains the most common clinical problem in tendon injuries. Therefore, the development of novel therapies is necessary for targeting at preventing tendon adhesion formation and improving tendon strength. Methods: We used rat fibroblasts for in vitro experiments to determine the optimal concentration of TSA in rats, and then set up negative control group, TSA intervention group, mir-29b interference adenovirus intervention group and TSA and mir-29b interference adenovirus co-intervention group. By comparing cell proliferation and protein expression in different group, we verified the effect and mechanism of drugs on fibroblast function. At the same time, the Sprague-Dawley rat Achilles tendon model in vivo was established in this study, which was divided into sham operation group and operation group. Afterwards in the operation group, mir-29b inhibitor and placebo were injected every 3 days respectively. Then the injection inhibitor group was divided into 5 groups which mean TSA was injected into the marked area at 0, 6, 24 and 72 hours after operation for 1 week, finally all of the rats were died at 3 weeks after operation. Through the observation of general properties, histological observation of Achilles tendon injury, biomechanical test and cell and protein expression in rats' tendon cell, the effect of drugs on tendon adhesion formation was analyzed. Results: We demonstrated that the combination of miR-29b inhibitor and tanshinone IIA(TSA) could prevent tendon adhesion and also enhance tendon strength. Mechanically, the miR-29b inhibitor could activate the TGF-ß/Smad3 pathway to trigger endogenous pathways and induce a high proliferation of fibroblast. Subsequently, we also found adding TSA after 6 hours of miR-29b treatment gave less cell cytotoxicity in our rat model with better outcome of less tendon adhesion and enhanced strength. Conclusion: We conclude that the use of miR-29b inhibitor at the end of the tendon break could initiate endogenous repair mechanism and subsequently use of TSA should be able to inhibit the exogenous repair mechanism. Therefore, the combination of both treatments could prevent tendon adhesion and ensure tendon strength. Our findings suggested that this approach would be a feasible approach for tendon repair.

Comparison of the Complete Eragrostis pilosa Chloroplast Genome with Its Relatives in Eragrostideae (Chloridoideae; Poaceae).

Eragrostis of the tribe Eragrostideae is a taxonomically complex genus, because of its polyploid nature and the presence of similar morphological characters among its species. However, the relationship between these morphologically indistinguishable species at the genomic level has not yet been investigated. Here, we report the complete chloroplast genome of E. pilosa and compare its genome structures, gene contents, simple sequence repeats (SSRs), sequence divergence, codon usage bias, and Kimura 2-parameter (K2P) interspecific genetic distances with those of other Eragrostideae species. The E. pilosa chloroplast genome was 134,815 bp in length and contained 132 genes and four regions, including a large single-copy region (80,100 bp), a small single-copy region (12,661 bp), and a pair of inverted repeats (21,027 bp). The average nucleotide diversity between E. pilosa and E. tef was estimated to be 0.011, and 0.01689 among all species. The minimum and maximum K2P interspecific genetic distance values were identified in psaA (0.007) and matK (0.029), respectively. Of 45 SSRs, eight were shared with E. tef, all of which were in the LSC region. Phylogenetic analysis resolved the monophyly of the sampled Eragrostis species and confirmed the close relationship between E. pilosa and E. tef. This study provides useful chlorophyll genomic information for further species identification and phylogenetic reconstruction of Eragrostis species.

A new species of the genus Hilethera Uvarov, 1923 (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Oedipodinae) from China and its complete mitochondrial genome.

The new species, Hilethera xinjiangensis sp. nov. (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Oedipodinae) is described based on specimens collected from Xinjiang, northern China. The new species is similar to H. brevipennis Zheng Lu, 2002 and H. turanica Uvarov, 1925, but differs from: (1) dark brown in general coloration, (2) darker coloration in forewings, (3) forewings longer than H. brevipennis but shorter than H. turanica, (4) cubital area of forewings boarder than H. brevipennis and H. turanica, (5) hind tibiae dark brown with two light yellow pre-basal rings, while dark with one fade pre-basal ring in H. brevipennis and light yellow with three dark rings in H. turanica.In addition, the complete mitogenome of holotype was sequenced using next-generation sequencing technology. The total length of the assembled mitogenome is 16,145 bp, representing 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, two ribosomal RNA genes and one noncoding region (D-loop region). The new mitogenome sequence is compared with published Oedipodinae mitogenomes and the phylogenetic relationships within the subfamily are reconstructed. The results infer that the gene cox1 could be a useful marker for higher phylogenetic level, while the genes nd5 and rrnL could be potentially useful markers between closely related species.

Cadmium-induced genome-wide DNA methylation changes in growth and oxidative metabolism in Drosophila melanogaster.

BACKGROUND: Cadmium (Cd)-containing chemicals can cause serious damage to biological systems. In animals and plants, Cd exposure can lead to metabolic disorders or death. However, for the most part the effects of Cd on specific biological processes are not known. DNA methylation is an important mechanism for the regulation of gene expression. In this study we examined the effects of Cd exposure on global DNA methylation in a living organism by whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) using Drosophila melanogaster as model. RESULTS: A total of 71 differentially methylated regions and 63 differentially methylated genes (DMGs) were identified by WGBS. A total of 39 genes were demethylated in the Cd treatment group but not in the control group, whereas 24 showed increased methylation in the former relative to the latter. In most cases, demethylation activated gene expression: genes such as Cdc42 and Mekk1 were upregulated as a result of demethylation. There were 37 DMGs that overlapped with differentially expressed genes from the digital expression library including baz, Act5C, and ss, which are associated with development, reproduction, and energy metabolism. CONCLUSIONS: DNA methylation actively regulates the physiological response to heavy metal stress in Drosophila in part via activation of apoptosis.

Transcriptomics and differential gene expression in Whitmania pigra (Annelida: Clitellata: Hirudinida: Hirudinidae): Contrasting feeding and fasting modes.

The medicinal utility of leeches has been demonstrated through decades of use in modern hospital settings, mainly as relievers of venous congestion following flap or digit replantation surgery. In the present study, we sequence and annotate (through BLAST- and Gene Ontology-based approaches) the salivary transcriptome of the nonblood feeding hirudinid Whitmania pigra and assess the differential gene expression of anticoagulation factors (through both quantitative real-time PCR [qRT-PCR] and in silico-based methods) during feeding and fasting conditions. This was done in order to evince the diversity of putative anticoagulation factors, as well as estimate the levels of upregulation of genes immediately after feeding. In total, we found sequences with demonstrated orthology (via both phylogenetic analyses and BLAST-based approaches) to seven different proteins that have previously been linked to anticoagulatory capabilities-eglin C, bdellin, granulin, guamerin, hyaluronidase, destabilase I, and lipocalin. All of these were recovered from leeches both in the fasting and in the feeding conditions, but all show signs of upregulation in the feeding leeches. Interestingly, our RNA-seq effort, coupled with a hypergeometric test, indicated that the differentially expressed genes were disproportionately involved in three main immunological pathways (endocytosis, peroxisome regulation, and lysosome regulation). The results and implications of the finding of anticoagulants in this nonblood feeding leech and the putative upregulation of anticoagulation factors after feeding are briefly discussed in an evolutionary context.

MicroRNA-152-5p inhibits proliferation and migration and promotes apoptosis by regulating expression of Smad3 in human keloid fibroblasts.

Keloids are the most common pathological form of trauma healing, with features that seriously affect appearance and body function, are difficult to treat and have a high recurrence rate. Emerging evidence suggests that miRNAs are involved in a variety of pathological processes and play an important role in the process of fibrosis. In this study, we investigated the function and regulatory network of miR-152-5p in keloids. The miRNA miR-152-5p is frequently downregulated in keloid tissue and primary cells compared to normal skin tissue and fibroblasts. In addition, the downregulation of miR-152-5p is significantly associated with the proliferation, migration and apoptosis of keloid cells. Overexpression of miR-152-5p significantly inhibits the progression of fibrosis in keloids. Smad3 is a direct target of miR-152-5p, and knockdown of Smad3 also inhibits fibrosis progression, consistent with the overexpression of miR-152-5p. The interaction between miR-152-5p and Smad3 occurs through the Erk1/2 and Akt pathways and regulates collagen3 production. In summary, our study demonstrates that miR-152-5p/Smad3 regulatory pathways involved in fibrotic progression may be a potential therapeutic target of keloids. [BMB Reports 2019; 52(3): 202-207].