Association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in hypertensive patients.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To examine the association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] with all-cause mortality and disease-specific mortality in patients with hypertension. METHODS AND RESULTS: This cohort study included US adults in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2007 to 2018. All-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality outcomes were determined by association with National Death Index records. Cox proportional risk models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for all-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for serum 25(OH)D concentrations. The cohort included 10,325 adult participants. The mean serum 25(OH)D level was 65.87 nmol/L, and 32.2% of patients were vitamin D deficient (<50 nmol/L). During a mean follow-up of 77 months, 1290 deaths were recorded, including 345 cardiovascular deaths and 237 cancer deaths. Patients with higher serum 25(OH)D were more likely to have lower all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality than those with serum 25(OH)D < 25.00 nmol/L. For cancer mortality in hypertensive patients, vitamin D may not have a predictive role in this. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that higher 25(OH)D levels are significantly associated with lower all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. These findings suggest that maintaining adequate vitamin D status may reduce the risk of death in patients with hypertension.

[Identification, biological characterization, and fungicide screening of pathogens causing leaf spot of Belamcanda chinensis].

The leaf spot of Belamcanda chinensis often appears in May to June and spreads rapidly during the flowering stage(July to September) in the cultivation fields, seriously affecting the yield and quality of B. chinensis. To identify and characterize the pathogens of the leaf spot, we isolated two species of Alternaria, identified them according to Koch's postulates, and tested their pathogenicity and biological characteristics. Furthermore, we determined the inhibitory effects of 6 chemical fungicides, 1 plant fungicide, and 3 microbial fungicides on the pathogens by using mycelial growth rate and plate confrontation method to select the appropriate control agents. The results showed that the two pathogens causing B. chinensis leaf spot were Alternaria tenuissima and A. alternata. The conidia of A. tenuissima often formed long chains with no or a few branches, while those of A. alternata often formed short branched chains. The optimum growth temperature of both A. tenuissima and A. alternata was 25 ℃. The two pathogens grew well in alkaline environment. The indoor fungicide screening experiments showed that 40% flusilazole had good inhibitory effects on the two pathogens, with the EC_(50) values of 12.42 mg·L~(-1) and 12.78 mg·L~(-1) for A. tenuissima and A. alternata, respectively. The results of this study provide a theoretical basis for the subsequent theoretical research and field control of B. chinensis leaf spot.

[Identification, biological characteristics, and control of pathogen causing southern blight of Pinellia ternata].

In summer in 2020, Pinellia ternata in many planting areas in Hubei suffered from serious southern blight, as manifested by the yellowing and wilted leaves and rotten tubers. This study aims to identify the pathogen, clarify the biological characteristics of the pathogen, and screen fungicides. To be specific, the pathogen was isolated, purified, and identified, and the pathogenicity was detected according to the Koch's postulates. Moreover, the biological characteristics of the pathogen were analyzed. Furthermore, PDA plates and seedlings were used to determine the most effective fungicides. The results showed that the mycelia of the pathogen were white and villous with silk luster, which produced a large number of white to black brown sclerotia. The pathogen was identified as Athelia rolfsii by morphological observation and molecular identification based on LSU and TEF gene sequences. The optimum growth conditions for A. rolfsii were 30 ℃ and pH 5-8, and the optimum conditions for the germination of sclerotia were 25 ℃ and pH 7-9. Bacillus subtilis, difenoconazole, and flusilazole were identified as effective fungicides with PDA, and their half maximal effective concentration(EC_(50)) was all less than 5 mg·L~(-1). The effective fungicides screened with the seedlings were hymexazol and difenoconazole. Based on the screening experiments, difenoconazole can be used as the main agent for the prevention and treatment of southern blight.

Next-generation CRISPR/Cas9 transcriptional activation in Drosophila using flySAM.

CRISPR/Cas9-based transcriptional activation (CRISPRa) has recently emerged as a powerful and scalable technique for systematic overexpression genetic analysis in Drosophila melanogaster We present flySAM, a potent tool for in vivo CRISPRa, which offers major improvements over existing strategies in terms of effectiveness, scalability, and ease of use. flySAM outperforms existing in vivo CRISPRa strategies and approximates phenotypes obtained using traditional Gal4-UAS overexpression. Moreover, because flySAM typically requires only a single sgRNA, it dramatically improves scalability. We use flySAM to demonstrate multiplexed CRISPRa, which has not been previously shown in vivo. In addition, we have simplified the experimental use of flySAM by creating a single vector encoding both the UAS:Cas9-activator and the sgRNA, allowing for inducible CRISPRa in a single genetic cross. flySAM will replace previous CRISPRa strategies as the basis of our growing genome-wide transgenic overexpression resource, TRiP-OE.

YES1 amplification is a mechanism of acquired resistance to EGFR inhibitors identified by transposon mutagenesis and clinical genomics.

In ∼30% of patients with EGFR-mutant lung adenocarcinomas whose disease progresses on EGFR inhibitors, the basis for acquired resistance remains unclear. We have integrated transposon mutagenesis screening in an EGFR-mutant cell line and clinical genomic sequencing in cases of acquired resistance to identify mechanisms of resistance to EGFR inhibitors. The most prominent candidate genes identified by insertions in or near the genes during the screen were MET, a gene whose amplification is known to mediate resistance to EGFR inhibitors, and the gene encoding the Src family kinase YES1. Cell clones with transposon insertions that activated expression of YES1 exhibited resistance to all three generations of EGFR inhibitors and sensitivity to pharmacologic and siRNA-mediated inhibition of YES1 Analysis of clinical genomic sequencing data from cases of acquired resistance to EGFR inhibitors revealed amplification of YES1 in five cases, four of which lacked any other known mechanisms of resistance. Preinhibitor samples, available for two of the five patients, lacked YES1 amplification. None of 136 postinhibitor samples had detectable amplification of other Src family kinases (SRC and FYN). YES1 amplification was also found in 2 of 17 samples from ALK fusion-positive lung cancer patients who had progressed on ALK TKIs. Taken together, our findings identify acquired amplification of YES1 as a recurrent and targetable mechanism of resistance to EGFR inhibition in EGFR-mutant lung cancers and demonstrate the utility of transposon mutagenesis in discovering clinically relevant mechanisms of drug resistance.

[Identification,biological characteristics and fungicide screening of pathogen of southern blight in Cynanchum stauntonii].

During the high-temperature and rainy season from June to October in 2017-2019,serious southern blight broke out in the Cynanchum stauntonii planting area in Tuanfeng county,Hubei province,which had a great impact on the yield and quality of medicinal materials. In this study,the pathogen of C. stauntonii was isolated,purified,and identified,and the pathogenicity was tested according to Koch's postulates. Meanwhile,the biological characteristics of the pathogen were analyzed. On this basis,the effective fungicides were screened in laboratory. Finally,the pathogen( BQ-1) was identified as Athelia rolfsii( Deuteromycotina,Basidiomycota,anamorph: Sclerotium rolfsii). The optimum growth conditions for BQ-1 were 25-30 ℃,p H 5-8,and alternating light and dark.The effective chemical fungicides were lime-sulphur-synthelic-solution( LSSS) and flusilazole,and the effective botanical fungicide was osthole. BQ-1 was highly homologous to the pathogen HS-1 of peanut southern blight,with the similarity of 18 S r DNA and TEF sequences at 99. 09%. The southern blight in C. stauntonii might be resulted from that in peanut. In the production of C. stauntonii,the following measures should be taken: avoiding rotation or neighboring with peanut,draining water from June to October to reduce humidity,and reasonably applying fungicides.

[Identification and biological characteristics of southern blight causing root rot on three medicine plants of Iridaceae in Dabie Mountains].

In order to identify the species and biological characteristics of the pathogen of southern blight from three kinds of Chinese medicine of Iridaceae(Belamcanda chinensis, Iris tectorum and I. japonica) in Dabie Mountains, the isolation, identification, pathogenicity and biological characteristics of the pathogens were studied according to Koch's postulates. In addition, 9 chemical fungicides, 3 botanical fungicides and 5 microbial fungicides were used to evaluate their inhibition to the isolates in vitro. The results showed that all the strains(SG-Q, YW-Q, and HDH-Q) isolated and purified from the diseased plants of B. chinensis, I. tectorum and I. japonica, respectively, were identified as Sclerotium rolfsii through morphological observation and sequence aligement of 18 S rDNA, rDNA-ITS and TEF. Field observations showed that the intensity of the disease incidence of three Iridaceae plants was B. chinensis>I. japonica> I. tectorum, and the pathogenicity of the strains was SG-Q>YW-Q>HDH-Q. For biological characteristics, SG-Q strain was suitable for growth under the 12 h light/12 h dark cycle, with the optimal growth temperature of 30 ℃ and pH of 5. Among the 9 tested chemical fungicides, 29% lime sulphure and 10% flusilazole had stronger inhibitory effect on mycelia growth of SG-Q. For 3 botanical fungicides, 1% osthol, 20% eugenol and 0.5% berberine could effectively inhibt the mycelial growth of SG-Q and cause the morphological variation of the pathogen. For 5 microbial fungicides, Trichoderma harzianum and Bacillus subtilis had better inhibition on the mycelium growth of SG-Q.

Evaluation of the feasibility of short-term electrodialysis for separating naturally occurring fluoride from instant brick tea infusion.

BACKGROUND: Removing excessive naturally occurring fluoride from tea and/or infusions is difficult because the process has low efficiency and causes secondary pollution. In this study, a novel electrodialysis (ED) technology was developed. We examined the effect of crucial parameters (electrolyte concentration, operation voltage, ED duration and initial concentration of the tea infusion) on defluoridation performance using a highly efficient ion-exchange membrane with five-compartment cells. RESULTS: The most effective ED system results were obtained at an electrolyte concentration of 10 g kg-1 and operating voltage of 20 V. Moreover, the fluoride removal capacity (10.70-66.93%) was highly dependent on the ED duration (1-15 min) and initial concentration of the tea infusion (0.5-10 g kg-1 ). The longer the ED duration and the lower the initial concentration, the higher was the defluoridation performance. During ED, limited loss of the main inclusions (total polyphenols, catechins, caffeine and selected ions) was observed. Furthermore, the D201 anion resin-filled ED stack (0.5-5 g) and improvement of concentrate compartment electrolyte (≥5 times the dilute compartment electrolyte) in the ED system enhanced the defluoridation rate significantly. CONCLUSION: ED is a potentially effective method that can be used for defluoridation in the deep processing of tea products. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.

Histone H1 defect in escort cells triggers germline tumor in Drosophila ovary.

Drosophila ovary is recognized as one of the best model systems to study stem cell biology in vivo. We had previously identified an autonomous role of the histone H1 in germline stem cell (GSC) maintenance. Here, we found that histone H1 depletion in escort cells (ECs) resulted in an increase of spectrosome-containing cells (SCCs), an ovary tumor-like phenotype. Further analysis showed that the Dpp pathway is excessively activated in these SCC cells, while the expression of bam is attenuated. In the H1-depleted ECs, both transposon activity and DNA damage had increased dramatically, followed by EC apoptosis, which is consistent with the role of H1 in other somatic cells. Surprisingly, H1-depleted ECs acquired cap cell characteristics including dpp expression, and the resulting abnormal Dpp level inhibits SCC further differentiation. Most interestingly, double knockdown of H1 and dpp in ECs can reduce the number of SCCs to the normal level, indicating that the additional Dpp secreted by ECs contributes to the germline tumor. Taken together, our findings indicate that histone H1 is an important epigenetic factor in controlling EC characteristics and a key suppressor of germline tumor.

PFKFB4 Promotes Breast Cancer Metastasis via Induction of Hyaluronan Production in a p38-Dependent Manner.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The bi-functional enzyme 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2, 6-biphosphatase-4 (PFKFB4) is highly expressed in many types of cancer and its requirement for tumor survival has been demonstrated in glioma, lung, and prostate cancers. However, whether PFKFB4 plays a role in the tumor metastasis remains uncertain. This study explores the role of PFKFB4 in tumor metastasis and its underlying mechanisms in breast cancer cells. METHODS: The expression of PFKFB4 was first analyzed using the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset, and confirmed by immunohistochemical staining of tissue microarray and breast cancer tissues from patient samples. Gain- and loss-of- function approaches were used to investigate the effects of PFKFB4 on breast cancer cell migration in vitro. Orthotopic xenograft model and experimental metastasis model were used to assess the effects of PFKFB4 on breast cancer cell metastasis in vivo. ELISA and immunofluorescence staining were used to examine HA production. Quantitative RT-PCR and western blotting were used to explore the mRNA and protein levels of HAS2, respectively. RESULTS: We found that PFKFB4 enhances the migration/invasiveness of breast cancer cells in vitro as well as in vivo. Notably, the effects of PFKFB4 on migration are mediated by induction of HAS2 expression and HA production. Moreover, PFKFB4-induced HAS2 up-regulation depends upon the activation of p38 signaling. CONCLUSION: PFKFB4 promotes the metastasis of breast cancer cells via induction of HAS2 expression and HA production in a p38-dependent manner. Therefore, the PFKFB4/p38/HAS2 signaling pathway may serve as a potential therapeutic target for metastatic breast cancer.

Magnetic iron(III)-based framework composites for the magnetic solid-phase extraction of fungicides from environmental water samples.

We adopted a facile hydrofluoric acid-free hydro-/solvothermal method for the preparation of four magnetic iron(III)-based framework composites (MIL-101@Fe3 O4 -COOH, MIL-101-NH2 @Fe3 O4 -COOH, MIL-53@Fe3 O4 -COOH, and MIL-53-NH2 @Fe3 O4 -COOH). The obtained four magnetic iron(III)-based framework composites were applied to magnetic separation and enrichment of the fungicides (prochloraz, myclobutanil, tebuconazole, and iprodione) from environmental samples before high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis. MIL-101-NH2 @Fe3 O4 -COOH showed more remarkable pre-concentration ability for the fungicides as compared to the other three magnetic iron(III)-based framework composites. The extraction parameters affecting enrichment efficiency including extraction time, sample pH, elution time, and the desorption solvent were investigated and optimized. Under the optimized conditions, the standard curve of correlation coefficients were all above 0.991, the limits of detection were 0.04-0.4 µg/L, and the relative standard deviations were below 10.2%. The recoveries of two real water samples ranged from 71.1-99.1% at the low spiking level (30 µg/L). Therefore, the MIL-101-NH2 @Fe3 O4 -COOH composites are attractive for the rapid and efficient extraction of fungicides from environmental water samples.

The adaptor CRADD/RAIDD controls activation of endothelial cells by proinflammatory stimuli.

A hallmark of inflammation, increased vascular permeability, is induced in endothelial cells by multiple agonists through stimulus-coupled assembly of the CARMA3 signalosome, which contains the adaptor protein BCL10. Previously, we reported that BCL10 in immune cells is targeted by the "death" adaptor CRADD/RAIDD (CRADD), which negatively regulates nuclear factor κB (NFκB)-dependent cytokine and chemokine expression in T cells (Lin, Q., Liu, Y., Moore, D. J., Elizer, S. K., Veach, R. A., Hawiger, J., and Ruley, H. E. (2012) J. Immunol. 188, 2493-2497). This novel anti-inflammatory CRADD-BCL10 axis prompted us to analyze CRADD expression and its potential anti-inflammatory action in non-immune cells. We focused our study on microvascular endothelial cells because they play a key role in inflammation. We found that CRADD-deficient murine endothelial cells display heightened BCL10-mediated expression of the pleotropic proinflammatory cytokine IL-6 and chemokine monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1/CCL2) in response to LPS and thrombin. Moreover, these agonists also induce significantly increased permeability in cradd(-/-), as compared with cradd(+/+), primary murine endothelial cells. CRADD-deficient cells displayed more F-actin polymerization with concomitant disruption of adherens junctions. In turn, increasing intracellular CRADD by delivery of a novel recombinant cell-penetrating CRADD protein (CP-CRADD) restored endothelial barrier function and suppressed the induction of IL-6 and MCP-1 evoked by LPS and thrombin. Likewise, CP-CRADD enhanced barrier function in CRADD-sufficient endothelial cells. These results indicate that depletion of endogenous CRADD compromises endothelial barrier function in response to inflammatory signals. Thus, we define a novel function for CRADD in endothelial cells as an inducible suppressor of BCL10, a key mediator of responses to proinflammatory agonists.

Anti-inflammatory control of human skin keratinocytes by targeting nuclear transport checkpoint.

Background: In the two common inflammatory skin diseases, Atopic Dermatitis (AD) and Psoriasis (Ps), keratinocytes (KCs) respond to immune insults through activation of proinflammatory transcription factors (TFs) and their translocation to the cell's nucleus. Therein, the TFs induce expression of genes encoding mediators of skin inflammation. The Nuclear Transport Checkpoint Inhibitors (NTCIs) were developed to regulate nuclear translocation of activated TFs, the essential step of inflammatory response. This new class of cell-penetrating peptide therapeutics controls inflammation caused by allergic, autoimmune, metabolic, and microbial insults. In preclinical model of AD, the treatment with NTCI, cSN50.1 peptide, suppressed the expression of Thymic Stromal Lymphopoietin (TSLP), the key gene in the development of allergic inflammation, among the 15 genes silenced by the NTCI. Here, we report the mechanism of anti-inflammatory action of NTCI in human skin-derived KCs. Objectives: We aimed to determine whether the NTCI treatment can protect human KCs from harmful inflammatory insults. Methods: Human primary KCs were pretreated with NTCI and challenged with the mix of cytokines Tumour Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-α) and Interleukin (IL)-17A, or with Phorbol 12-Myristate 13-Acetate (PMA), and analysed for nuclear content of TFs and the expression of genes encoding mediators of inflammation. Results: The nuclear import of TFs, Nuclear Factor ĸB (NF-ĸB) and Signal Transduction and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3), was inhibited in cells treated with NTCI. The expression of TSLP, along with genes encoding the core mediators of inflammation (TNF, IL1B, and IL6) was suppressed by NTCI. Noteworthy, NTCI silenced genes encoding Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor (CSF2), and chemokine IL-8 (CXCL8), responsible for skin infiltration by the eosinophils and other myelomonocytic cells. Conclusion: The control of inflammatory response in human KCs by NTCI is attributed to the inhibition of nuclear import of proinflammatory TFs. The protection of human KCs by NTCI, adds new perspectives to the completed Phase two clinical trial of the NTCI (AMTX-100 CF) for AD (NCT04313400).

DcMYB62, a transcription factor from carrot, enhanced cadmium tolerance of Arabidopsis by inducing the accumulation of carotenoids and hydrogen sulfide.

Cadmium (Cd) is a significant heavy metal contaminant within the environment, carrying a notable level of toxicity that presents a substantial hazard to both plant and human. Carrot (Daucus carota), a significant root vegetable crop globally, have evolved multiple transcriptional regulatory mechanisms to cope with Cd stress, with a crucial involvement of the myeloblastosis (MYB) transcription factor. In this study, the DcMYB62 gene encoding 288 amino acids, localized in the nucleus and demonstrated transcription activation property, was isolated from carrot (cv. 'Kuroda'). There was a positive relationship observed between the levels of DcMYB62 expression and the accumulation patterns of carotenoids in two distinct carrot cultivars. Further investigation revealed that the expression of DcMYB62 improved Cd tolerance of Arabidopsis by increasing seed germination rate, root length, and overall survival rate. The levels of carotenoids in DcMYB62 transgenic Arabidopsis surpassed those in wild type, accompanied by elevated expression levels of 15-cis-phytoene desaturase, zeta-carotene desaturase, and carotenoid isomerase. Meanwhile, the heterologous expression of DcMYB62 promoted the biosynthesis of abscisic acid (ABA) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S), which in turn suppressed the formation of hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anion, while also stimulating stomatal closure. Furthermore, the heterologous expression of DcMYB62 increased the transcription of genes associated with heavy metal resistance in Arabidopsis, notably nicotianamine synthase. Overall, this study contributes to understanding how DcMYB62 promote Cd stress resistance of plants by regulating the biosynthesis pathways of carotenoids, ABA, and H2S, which offers valuable insights into the regulatory mechanism connecting DcMYBs with Cd stress response of carrot.

Hydrogen sulfide alleviates cadmium stress in germinating carrot seeds by promoting the accumulation of proline.

Carrot (Daucus carota L.), a widely cultivated economically vegetable from the Apiaceae family, is grown globally. However, carrots can be adversely impacted by cadmium (Cd) pollution in the soil due to its propensity to accumulate in the fleshy root, thus impeding carrot growth and posing health hazards to consumers. Given the potential of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) to improve plant resistance against Cd stress, we treated germinating carrot seeds with varying concentrations of sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS), aiming to alleviate the toxic impacts of Cd stress on carrot seed germination. The results revealed that carrot seeds treated with a concentration of 0.25 mM NaHS displayed better seed germination-associated characteristics compared to seeds treated with NaHS concentrations of 0.1 mM and 0.5 mM. Further investigation revealed a rise in the expression levels of L-cysteine desulfhydrase and D-cysteine desulfhydrase, along with enhanced activity of L-cysteine desulfhydrase and D-cysteine desulfhydrase among the NaHS treatment group, thereby leading to H2S accumulation. Moreover, NaHS treatment triggered the expression of pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase and pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase and promoted the accumulation of endogenous proline, while the contents of soluble sugar and soluble protein increased correspondingly. Interestingly, since the application of exogenous proline did not influence the accumulation of endogenous H2S, suggesting that H2S served as the upstream regulator of proline. Histochemical staining and biochemical indices revealed that NaHS treatment led to elevated antioxidant enzyme activity, alongside a suppression of superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide generation. Furthermore, high performance liquid chromatography analysis revealed that NaHS treatment reduced Cd2+ uptake, thereby promoting germination rate, seed vitality, and hypocotyl length of carrot seeds under Cd stress. Overall, our findings shed light on the application of NaHS to enhance carrot resistance against Cd stress and lay a foundation for exploring the regulatory role of H2S in plants responding to Cd stress.

Event-triggered tracking control for switched nonlinear systems.

In this paper, we study the output tracking control problem based on the event-triggered mechanism for cascade switched nonlinear systems. Firstly, an integral controller based on event-triggered conditions is designed, and the output tracking error of the closed-loop system can converge to a bounded region under the switching signal satisfying the average dwell time. Secondly, it is proved that the proposed minimum inter-event interval always has a positive lower bound and the Zeno behavior is successfully avoided during the sampling process. Finally, the numerical simulation is given to verify the feasibility of the proposed method.

Activation of thousands of genes in the lungs and kidneys by sepsis is countered by the selective nuclear blockade.

The steady rise of sepsis globally has reached almost 49 million cases in 2017, and 11 million sepsis-related deaths. The genomic response to sepsis comprising multi-system stage of raging microbial inflammation has been reported in the whole blood, while effective treatment is lacking besides anti-microbial therapy and supportive measures. Here we show that, astoundingly, 6,237 significantly expressed genes in sepsis are increased or decreased in the lungs, the site of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Moreover, 5,483 significantly expressed genes in sepsis are increased or decreased in the kidneys, the site of acute injury (AKI). This massive genomic response to polymicrobial sepsis is countered by the selective nuclear blockade with the cell-penetrating Nuclear Transport Checkpoint Inhibitor (NTCI). It controlled 3,735 sepsis-induced genes in the lungs and 1,951 sepsis-induced genes in the kidneys. The NTCI also reduced without antimicrobial therapy the bacterial dissemination: 18-fold in the blood, 11-fold in the lungs, and 9-fold in the spleen. This enhancement of bacterial clearance was not significant in the kidneys. Cumulatively, identification of the sepsis-responsive host's genes and their control by the selective nuclear blockade advances a better understanding of the multi-system mechanism of sepsis. Moreover, it spurs much-needed new diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive approaches.

[Distribution, hazard evaluation, and control measures of allergenic airborne pollen]. / è‡´æ•æ€§æ°”ä¼ èŠ±ç²‰çš„åˆ†å¸ƒã€å±å®³è¯„ä»·åŠé˜²æ²»æŽªæ–½.

Allergenic airborne pollen can induce hay fever such as rhinitis and asthma. Many studies have been conducted on the allergenic pollution caused by airborne pollen. We synthesized available studies to summarize the temporal and spatial distributions of airborne pollen and influencing meteorological factors. We further summarized and discussed the hazards of airborne pollen sensitization on human health and evaluation indicators for classifying hazard levels. We described the research progress of prevention and control measures of airborne pollen induced pollution from the perspectives of source control, route monitoring, and prevention of susceptible population. Considering the limitations of current studies, we proposed some research directions on allergenic airborne pollen. The types of allergenic plants needed to be clearly identified and allergentic potential should be quantitatively identified. The methods of pollen collection and concentration monitoring needed to be improved and standardized. This review could provide a scientific guidance for the study on preventing and treating pollen allergies as well as optimizing urban green space planning.

CpG methylation at the USF-binding site mediates cell-specific transcription of human ascorbate transporter SVCT2 exon 1a.

SVCT2 (sodium-vitamin C co-transporter 2) is the major transporter mediating vitamin C uptake in most organs. Its expression is driven by two promoters (CpG-poor exon 1a promoter and CpG-rich exon 1b promoter). In the present study, we mapped discrete elements within the proximal CpG-poor promoter responsible for exon 1a transcription. We identified two E boxes for USF (upstream stimulating factor) binding and one Y box for NF-Y (nuclear factor Y) binding. We show further that NF-Y and USF bind to the exon 1a promoter in a co-operative manner, amplifying the binding of each to the promoter, and is absolutely required for the full activity of the exon 1a promoter. The analysis of the CpG site located at the upstream USF-binding site in the promoter showed a strong correlation between expression and demethylation. It was also shown that exon 1a transcription was induced in cell culture treated with the demethylating agent decitabine. The specific methylation of this CpG site impaired both the binding of USF and the formation of the functional NF-Y-USF complex as well as promoter activity, suggesting its importance for cell-specific transcription. Thus CpG methylation at the upstream USF-binding site functions in establishing and maintaining cell-specific transcription from the CpG-poor SVCT2 exon 1a promoter.

Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals the role of immune-related autophagy in spinal cord injury in rats.

Spinal cord injury refers to damage to the spinal cord due to trauma, disease, or degeneration; and the number of new cases is increasing yearly. Significant cellular changes are known to occur in the area of spinal cord injury. However, changes in cellular composition, trajectory of cell development, and intercellular communication in the injured area remain unclear. Here, we used single-cell RNA sequencing to evaluate almost all the cell types that constitute the site of spinal cord injury in rats. In addition to mapping the cells of the injured area, we screened the expression of immune autophagy-related factors in cells and identified signaling pathways by the measuring the expression of the receptor-ligand pairs to regulate specific cell interactions during autophagy after spinal cord injury. Our data set is a valuable resource that provides new insights into the pathobiology of spinal cord injury and other traumatic diseases of the central nervous system.