Biological characteristics of Muse cells derived from MenSCs and their application in acute liver injury and intracerebral hemorrhage diseases.

The increasing interest in multilineage differentiating stress-enduring (Muse) cells within the field of regenerative medicine is attributed to their exceptional homing capabilities, prolonged viability in adverse conditions, and enhanced three-germ-layer differentiate ability, surpassing their parent mesenchymal stem cells. Given their abundant sources, non-invasive collection procedure, and periodic availability, human menstrual blood-derived endometrium stem cells (MenSCs) have been extensively investigated as a potential resource for stem cell-based therapies. However, there is no established modality to isolate Muse cells from MenSCs and disparity in gene expression profiles between Muse cells and MenSCs remain unknown. In this study, Muse cells were isolated from MenSCs by long-time trypsin incubation method. Muse cells expressed pluripotency markers and could realize multilineage differentiation in vitro. Compared with MenSCs, Muse cells showed enhanced homing ability and superior therapeutic efficacy in animal models of acute liver injury (ALI) and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Furthermore, the RNA-seq analysis offers insights into the mechanism underlying the disparity in trypsin resistance and migration ability between Muse and MenSCs cells. This research offers a significant foundation for further exploration of cell-based therapies using MenSCs-derived Muse cells in the context of various human diseases, highlighting their promising application in the field of regenerative medicine.

Expression of maize OXS2a in Arabidopsis stunts plant growth but enhances heat tolerance.

As plants encounter various environmental stresses, judicial allocation of resources to stress response is crucial for plant fitness. The plant OXS2 (OXIDATIVE STRESS 2) family has been reported to play important roles in growth regulation and stress response. Here, we report that the maize OXS2 family member ZmOXS2a when expressed in Arabidopsis retards growth including delayed flowering, but improves heat tolerance. ZmOXS2a can be found in the cytoplasm, nucleus and PBs/P bodies (mRNA processing bodies), but heat treatment induces higher accumulation in the PBs. Deletion of ARR (arginine rich region) and TZF (tandem zinc finger) domains for high-affinity RNA-binding reduced PBs accumulation of ZmOXS2a; and unlike ZmOXS2a, expression of this deletion mutant gene affected neither Arabidopsis growth nor heat tolerance. This suggests that ZmOXS2a might be involved in RNA degradation, which would also account for the larger amount of down-regulated genes found in ZmOXS2a expressing lines. Furthermore, 240 of 890 down-regulated genes contain ARE (AU-rich elements) in the mRNA 3'UTR that might be potential targets of ZmOXS2a. Expression of ZmOXS2a also disturbs the response to ABA (abscisic acid) and cytokinin, as GO (gene ontology) analysis shows that 50 and 15 DEGs (differentially expressed genes) are enriched in the GO term for ABA and cytokinin responses, respectively. ZmOXS2a expression lines are more sensitive to ABA, but less sensitive to cytokinin. It is likely that ZmOXS2a promotes the degradation of the mRNA of down-regulated genes containing ARE, which consequently perturbs the hormone pathways that affect stress response-related plant growth.

High-speed rail and firms' environmental performance: empirical evidence from China.

Developing countries are struggling to balance the economic development and environment protection. This paper examines the impact of high-speed rail (HSR) on firm-level environmental performance in China. Using the staggered expansion of China's passenger-dedicated HSR and the panel data of Chinese manufacturing firm-level data from 2002 to 2012, we find that firms exhibit a lower level of chemical oxygen demand (COD) emissions after the opening of HSR. The average geographical slope of city is used as an instrumental variable to address the potential endogeneity problem of the HSR variable. Furthermore, the reduction effect of HSR introduction on firms' COD emission intensity is more pronounced for firms that located in eastern regions as well as technology-intensive and labor-intensive firms. Agglomeration economies, scale effects, and technological innovation are three plausible channels that allow HSR to promote firm environmental performance. Our paper provides new insights into the impacts of introduction of HSR on firm environmental performance and the development of green city.

Root microbiome changes associated with cadmium exposure and/or overexpression of a transgene that reduces Cd content in rice.

Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy metal that can accumulate in crop plants. We reported previously the engineering of a low cadmium-accumulating line (2B) of rice through overexpression of a truncated OsO3L2 gene. As expression of this transgene was highest in plant roots, amplicon and metatranscriptome sequencing were used to investigate the possibility that its expression affects root associated microbes. Based on amplicon sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA, but less so from fungal ITS, the OTUs (operational taxonomic units) showed less diversity in soil tightly (rhizoplane) than loosely (rhizosphere) associated with plant roots. Significantly changed OTUs caused by the low-Cd accumulating plant 2B, Cd treatment or both were found, and 10 of the 13 OTUs (77%) that were enriched in Cd treated 2B samples over the wild type counterpart have been previously described as involved in tolerance to Cd or other heavy metals. Metatranscriptome sequencing of rhizosphere microbiome found that bacteria accounted for 70-75% of the microbial RNA. Photosynthesis-antenna proteins and nitrogen metabolism pathways were most active in soil microbes treated with Cd and grown with plant 2B. Correspondingly, the relative abundance of Cyanobacteria was enriched to < 1% of Cd treated rhizosphere bacteria, yet accounted for up to 13% of Cd treated 2B rhizospheric transcripts. These enriched microbes by transgene and Cd are worthy candidates for future application on reducing crop uptake of Cd.

Soil salinity regulation of soil microbial carbon metabolic function in the Yellow River Delta, China.

The ecological consequences of soil salinization, one of the major causes of soil degradation worldwide, on soil carbon (C) emissions are well known, but less is known about the related microbial C metabolic function. We conducted laboratory incubation experiments on soil samples under a salt gradient at four levels (non-saline, low, medium, and high salinity soils) from coastal saline-alkaline soil of the Yellow River Delta, China, to assess the role of soil salinity in regulating C emissions and microbial abundance. We also evaluated the associations between salt content and the read number of microbial C metabolism genes by determining the soil metagenomes. We found that soil salinity was negatively related to soil C, nitrogen (N) content, C emissions, bacterial gene copy number, and the relative abundances of Actinobacteria, Thermoleophilia, and Betaproteobacteria, but positively related to the C/N ratio and the relative abundance of Gemaproteobacteria and Halobacteria. Increases in soil salinity correlated with decreases in carbohydrate metabolism and gene abundances of glycosyl transferases and glycoside hydrolases based on the metagenomic data. In contrast, the enzyme active genes of carbohydrate esterases and auxiliary activities were positively related to soil salinity. This study provides a clear understanding of the response of soil microbial communities and their C metabolic functions to soil salinity. We offer evidence that soil salinity has significant effects on microbial communities and soil C metabolic functions, resulting in an overall negative effect on soil C emissions.

Inconsistent response of bacterial phyla diversity and abundance to soil salinity in a Chinese delta.

Soil salinization is an increasingly serious problem and decreases crop yields in the Yellow River Delta (YRD), but its effects on bacterial community and diversity at the phylum level are not well known. We used high-throughput sequencing of soil bacterial 16S rRNA to identify soil bacterial communities and diversity across a gradient of soil salinity (electrical conductivity), namely, S1: low salinity level (1.78 ds/m), S2: medium salinity level (3.16 ds/m), S3: high salinity level (17.26 ds/m), S4: extreme salinity level (34.41 ds/m), and a non-salted site as the control (CK, 0.92 ds/m). Our results indicated the significantly higher values of soil C/N ratio in S2, S3, and S4 compared with that in CK. Significantly lower values of the Shannon and Chao 1 indexes were observed in S4 compared with the CK (p < 0.05). High salinity decreased the relative abundance of Actinobacteria and Acidobacteria, but increased that of Gemmatimonadetes and Bacteroidetes. Additionally, the Shannon diversity of Bacteroidetes increased by 15.5% in S4 compared with that in the CK. Our results indicate that soil salt is a main factor regulating bacterial phyla diversity and community in the extremely saline-alkaline soils of YRD. The high abundance and diversity of Bacteroidetes can be used for saline-alkali land restoration.

Complete sequence and detailed analysis of the first indigenous plasmid from Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzicola.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial plasmids have a major impact on metabolic function and adaptation of their hosts. An indigenous plasmid was identified in a Chinese isolate (GX01) of the invasive phytopathogen Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzicola (Xoc), the causal agent of rice bacterial leaf streak (BLS). To elucidate the biological functions of the plasmid, we have sequenced and comprehensively annotated the plasmid. METHODS: The plasmid DNA was extracted from Xoc strain GX01 by alkaline lysis and digested with restriction enzymes. The cloned and subcloned DNA fragments in pUC19 were sequenced by Sanger sequencing. Sequences were assembled by using Sequencher software. Gaps were closed by primer walking and sequencing, and multi-PCRs were conducted through the whole plasmid sequence for verification. BLAST, phylogenetic analysis and dinucleotide calculation were performed for gene annotation and DNA structure analysis. Transformation, transconjugation and stress tolerance tests were carried out for plasmid function assays. RESULTS: The indigenous plasmid from Xoc strain GX01, designated pXOCgx01, is 53,206-bp long and has been annotated to possess 64 open reading frames (ORFs), including genes encoding type IV secretion system, heavy metal exporter, plasmid stability factors, and DNA mobile factors, i.e., the Tn3-like transposon. Bioinformatics analysis showed that pXOCgx01 has a mosaic structure containing different genome contexts with distinct genomic heterogeneities. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the closest relative of pXOCgx01 is pXAC64 from Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri str. 306. It was estimated that there are four copies of pXOCgx01 per cell of Xoc GX01 by PCR assay and the calculation of whole genome shotgun sequencing data. We demonstrate that pXOCgx01 is a self-transmissible plasmid and can replicate in some Xanthomonas spp. strains, but not in Escherichia coli DH5α. It could significantly enhance the tolerance of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae PXO99A to the stresses of heavy metal ions. The plasmid survey indicated that nine out of 257 Xoc Chinese isolates contain plasmids. CONCLUSIONS: pXOCgx01 is the first report of indigenous plasmid from Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzicola, and the first completely sequenced plasmid from Xanthomonas oryzae species. It is a self-transmissible plasmid and has a mosaic structure, containing genes for macromolecule secretion, heavy metal exportation, and DNA mobile factors, especially the Tn3-like transposon which may provide transposition function for mobile insertion cassette and play a major role in the spread of pathogenicity determinants. The results will be helpful to elucidate the biological significance of this cryptic plasmid and the adaptive evolution of Xoc.

Application of a novel alkali-tolerant thermostable DyP-type peroxidase from Saccharomonospora viridis DSM 43017 in biobleaching of eucalyptus kraft pulp.

Saccharomonospora viridis is a thermophilic actinomycete that may have biotechnological applications because of its dye decolorizing activity, though the enzymatic oxidative system responsible for this activity remains elusive. Bioinformatic analysis revealed a DyP-type peroxidase gene in the genome of S. viridis DSM 43017 with sequence similarity to peroxidase from dye-decolorizing microbes. This gene, svidyp, consists of 1,215 bp encoding a polypeptide of 404 amino acids. The gene encoding SviDyP was cloned, heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli, and then purified. The recombinant protein could efficiently decolorize several triarylmethane dyes, anthraquinonic and azo dyes under neutral to alkaline conditions. The optimum pH and temperature for SviDyP was pH 7.0 and 70°C, respectively. Compared with other DyP-type peroxidases, SviDyP was more active at high temperatures, retaining>63% of its maximum activity at 50-80°C. It also showed broad pH adaptability (>35% activity at pH 4.0-9.0) and alkali-tolerance (>80% activity after incubation at pH 5-10 for 1 h at 37°C), and was highly thermostable (>60% activity after incubation at 70°C for 2 h at pH 7.0). SviDyP had an accelerated action during the biobleaching of eucalyptus kraft pulp, resulting in a 21.8% reduction in kappa number and an increase of 2.98% (ISO) in brightness. These favorable properties make SviDyP peroxidase a promising enzyme for use in the pulp and paper industries.