How to identify and quantify the members of the Bacillus genus?

Members of the Bacillus genus are widely distributed throughout natural environments and have been studied for decades among others for their physiology, genetics, ecological functions, and applications. However, despite its prevalence in nature, the characterization and classification of Bacillus remain challenging due to its complex and ever-evolving taxonomic framework. This review addresses the current state of the Bacillus taxonomic landscape and summarizes the critical points in the development of Bacillus phylogeny. With a clear view of Bacillus phylogeny as a foundation, we subsequently review the methodologies applied in identifying and quantifying Bacillus, while also discussing their respective advantages and disadvantages.

Elevated first-trimester neutrophil elastase and proteinase 3 increase the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus and adverse fetal outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Chronic inflammation plays a vital role in the development of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Studies in mouse models show that neutrophil serine proteases (NSPs), neutrophil elastase (NE) and proteinase-3 (PR3) are important drivers of chronic inflammation with consequent metabolic disturbances. This study evaluated the association of NE and PR3 with GDM development and adverse fetal outcomes. METHOD(S): This was a prospective cohort study. Serum PR3 and NE concentration was measured in all enrolled pregnant women in the first and the second trimester to determine the connection between NSPs and GDM and adverse fetal outcomes. Logistic regression, spline regression and linear regression analyses were applied to investigate the association of NE or PR3 with GDM development and adverse fetal outcomes. The concentration of NE and PR3 in placental biopsies was evaluated by semi-quantitative analysis of immunohistochemistry staining. RESULT(S): NE or PR3 concentration in the first trimester, rather than the second, increased more significantly in women with GDM than in those without, regardless of pre-pregnancy body mass index and age. There was a stepwise increase in GDM occurrence as well as comprehensive adverse fetal outcomes across tertiles of NE and PR3. NE and PR3 were positively associated with neutrophil count, pre-pregnancy BMI, plasma glucose level and newborn weight. Logistic regression revealed NE or PR3 to be independent risk factors for the development of GDM and comprehensive adverse fetal outcomes. Spline regression showed a significant increased risk of GDM occurrence and comprehensive adverse fetal outcomes when serum NE concentration exceeded 417.60 ng/mL and a similar result for PR3 and GDM occurrence when the latter exceeded 88.52 ng/mL. Immunohistochemistry data confirmed that enriched NE and PR3 content in placental tissue may have contributed to the development of GDM. CONCLUSION(S): This work demonstrates that excessive first-trimester NE and PR3 increase the risk of GDM development and comprehensive adverse fetal outcomes.

Prevalence and risk factors of dental fluorosis among children aged 8-12 years in Shandong province of China.

This study was to investigate the prevalence and severity of children's dental fluorosis (DF) in Shandong and identified the potential risk factors for DF. A total of 87 villages in Shandong were investigated to calculate the prevalence of DF and Community Fluorosis Index (CFI) in 2018-2019. Six hundred and seventy children were enrolled to identify the potential risk factors using univariate and multivariate logistic regressions. Goodman-Kruskal Gamma was used to explore the factors related to the severity of DF. In 87 villages, 1249 of 8700 (14.36%) children still have DF. The prevalence of DF in most villages was below 40% in 2018-2019. Water fluorine concentration when selected for the study and urinary fluorine concentration were related to the risk of DF (P < 0.001). Some eating habits, like lower frequency of eating fresh vegetables, eggs, and beans, were associated with the risk of DF (P < 0.001). The high water fluorine concentration, and lower frequency of eating fresh vegetables, eggs, and beans were also related to the severity of DF (P < 0.001). DF in children in Shandong province is still a common endemic disease. This study tries to provide a useful guide for the prevention and control of DF.

DNA Nanobarrel-Based Drug Delivery for Paclitaxel and Doxorubicin.

Co-delivery of anticancer drugs and target agents by endogenous materials is an inevitable approach towards targeted and synergistic therapy. Employing DNA base pair complementarities, DNA nanotechnology exploits a unique nanostructuring method and has demonstrated its capacity for nanoscale positioning and templated assembly. Moreover, the water solubility, biocompatibility, and modifiability render DNA structure suitable candidate for drug delivery applications. We here report single-stranded DNA tail conjugated antitumor drug paclitaxel (PTX), and the co-delivery of PTX, doxorubicin and targeting agent mucin 1 (MUC-1) aptamer on a DNA nanobarrel carrier. We investigated the effect of tail lengths on drug release efficiencies and dual drug codelivery-enabled cytotoxicity. Owing to the rapidly developing field of structural DNA nanotechnology, functional DNA-based drug delivery is promising to achieve clinical therapeutic applications.

Is there crosstalk between circadian clocks in plants and the rhizomicrobiome?

Circadian clocks occur across the kingdoms of life, including some fungi and bacteria present in the root-associated soil known as the rhizosphere. Recent work from Amy Newman and colleagues, published in BMC Biology, has discovered that the circadian clock in Arabidopsis plants affects the rhythmicity of rhizosphere microbial communities This brings into play the exciting question of whether there is a bidirectional rhythmic interaction between plants and their rhizomicrobiome. Here, we discuss how the findings of Newman et al. suggest that soil microbiomes can have both self-sustained and plant-imposed rhythmicity, and the challenges of plant-microbiome circadian clock research.

Acid/Base-Steered Cascade Cyclization: An Efficient One-Pot Access to Diverse Isobenzofuranone and Isoindolobenzoxazinone Derivatives.

We herein report the acid/base-steered two distinct reaction pathways of 2-acylbenzoic acids with isatoic anhydrides. In the presence of Na2CO3, the cascade process consists of the cyclization of 2-acetylbenzoic acid and nucleophilic ring-opening reaction of isatoic anhydride to furnish isobenzofuranone derivatives with high efficiency. However, p-toluenesulfonic acid can promote the product isobenzofuranones to undergo sequential intramolecular rearrangment, nucleophilic addition and cyclization reaction to produce diverse isoindolobenzoxazinones in good yields. The synthetic utility of this method was further demonstrated by the gram-scale preparation of the desired products and the facile transformations of the resulting products.

Effect of the FA2H Gene on cashmere fineness of Jiangnan cashmere goats based on transcriptome sequencing.

BACKGROUND: Cashmere goats are a heterogeneous hairy mammal. The fineness of cashmere can affect its economic value. Therefore, in this study, we used transcriptome sequencing techniques to analyze the gene expression profiles of the skin tissues of cashmere goats with different cashmere fineness. The selected candidate genes were functionally verified with the secondary hair follicle hair papillary cells of cashmere goats. RESULTS: We identified 479 DEGs, of which 238 mRNAs were up-regulated in the fine velvet group and 241 mRNA were down-regulated. Based on functional annotation and protein interaction network analysis, we found some genes that may affect the fineness of cashmere, including SOX18, SOX4, WNT5A, IGFBP4, KAP8, KRT36, and FA2H. Using qRT-PCR, Western blot, CCK-8 cell viability detection, EDU cell proliferation detection, and flow cytometry, we found that overexpression of the FA2H gene could promote the proliferation of secondary hair follicle DPCs in cashmere goats. At the same time, we proved that FA2H could regulate the expression levels of the FGF5 and BMP2 genes in DPCs. CONCLUSION: The results of this study provide a useful reference for the genetics and breeding of Jiangnan cashmere goats and goat genome annotation, and provide an experimental basis for improving cashmere quality of the cashmere goat.

Different Lewis Acid Promotor-Steered Highly Regioselective Phosphorylation of Tertiary Enamides.

Different Lewis acid promotor-steered highly regioselective phosphorylation of tertiary enamides with diverse H-phosphonates or H-phosphine oxides was developed. Under the catalysis of iron salt, the phosphonyl group was introduced into the α-position of tertiary enamides, affording various α-phosphorylated amides in high efficiency. On the other hand, the ß-phosphorylated tertiary enamides were efficiently obtained as the products in the presence of manganese(III) acetylacetonate.

Synthesis of Diverse Pentasubstituted Pyrroles by a Gold(I)-Catalyzed Cascade Rearrangement-Cyclization of Tertiary Enamide.

An efficient Au(I)-catalyzed intramolecular cascade reaction of tertiary enamides tethered an alkynyl group has been developed. The process is composed of a propargyl-claisen rearrangement and 5-exo-dig cyclization. This protocol provided a powerful method for the preparation of a variety of pentasubstituted pyrroles derivatives with excellent functional group tolerance in excellent yields. Scale-up experiment and chemical transformations of products exhibited the versatility of tertiary enamides in organic synthesis again.

Manganese(III)-promoted highly stereoselective phosphorylation of acyclic tertiary enamides to synthesize E-selective ß-phosphoryl enamides.

A concise manganese(III)-promoted stereoselective ß-phosphorylation of acyclic tertiary enamides and diverse H-phosphine oxides was achieved. This reaction proceeds with absolute E-selectivity in contrast to Z-selectivity obtained in other previous works and affords various E-selective ß-phosphorylated tertiary enamides in high efficiency. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of E-selective ß-phosphorylation of tertiary enamides through C-H functionalization. In addition, the method features broad substrate scope, good functional group compatibility and efficient scale-up.

Diverse privileged N-polycyclic skeletons accessed from a metal-free cascade cyclization reaction.

An exquisite metal-free cascade cyclization reaction of 2-acylbenzoic acids with amines was developed, which provided a powerful method for the one-pot synthesis of diverse isoindoloisoquinoline and benzoindolizinoindole derivatives. This protocol avoided the use of metal catalysts, proceeded with high efficiency and had broad substrate scope. These resulting products could be transformed into tertiary amines under the reduction of LiAlH4/AlCl3, followed by the Hofmann elimination offering lots of nitrogen-containing nine-membered ring compounds in excellent yields. All synthesized products containing fused N-polycyclic skeletons were difficult to be constructed using traditional methods and they have a wide range of applications in the pharmaceutical area.

Temporal-order iconicity bias in narrative event understanding and memory.

Incongruence between the narrated (encoded) order and the actual chronological order of events is ubiquitous in various kinds of narratives and information modalities. The iconicity assumption in text comprehension proposes that readers will by default assume the chronological order to match the narrated order. However, it is not clear whether this iconicity assumption would directly bias inferred chronology of events and memory of their narrated order. In the current study, using non-linearly narrated video narratives as encoding materials, we dissociated the narrated order and the underlying chronological order of events. In Experiment 1, we found that participants' judgments of the chronological order of events were biased by the narrated order, but not vice versa. In Experiment 2, when the chronological positions of events were provided during encoding, participants' judgments of the chronological order were not biased by the narrated order, rather, their memory of the narrated order of events was biased by the chronological order. Interpreting the bias under a descriptive Bayesian framework, we offer a new perspective on the role of the iconicity assumption as prior belief, apart from prior knowledge about event sequences, in event understanding as well as memory.

Cholecalciferol Supplementation Promotes Bone Turnover in Chinese Adults with Vitamin D Deficiency.

BACKGROUND: Bone turnover markers (BTMs) are proposed as alternative indicators for bone mineral density in diagnosis and management of osteoporosis. However, little is known about the effects of vitamin D supplementation on BTMs in nonwhite populations. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the responses in BTMs after vitamin D supplementation in Asians. METHODS: In this secondary data analysis of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 448 Chinese adults [mean ± SD age: 31.9 ± 8.0 y; mean ± SD body mass index (kg/m2): 22.1 ± 2.6; 69% were women] with vitamin D deficiency (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] <50 nmol/L) received 2000 IU/d cholecalciferol or placebo for 20 wk. Serum concentrations of 25(OH)D, parathyroid hormone (PTH), calcium, and markers of bone formation and resorption were measured at weeks 0 and 20. Intention-to-treat analysis was applied, and between-group differences were compared by general linear models with adjustments. RESULTS: Cholecalciferol supplementation increased the serum bone alkaline phosphatase (BALP) concentration (+1.7 ± 1.9 µg/L) significantly more than placebo (+1.1 ± 1.7 µg/L; P = 0.004), but not circulating concentrations of procollagen type I N-terminal propeptide (PINP), ß-isomerized C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (ß-CTX), or tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRAP5b) (P ≥ 0.53). Notably, a pooled analysis indicated that changes in serum 25(OH)D were positively associated with changes in serum BALP, PINP, and TRAP5b (r = 0.07-0.16, P ≤ 0.02), but inversely with changes in PTH (r = -0.15, P < 0.001). Among cholecalciferol-treated participants, individuals who achieved serum 25(OH)D ≥75 nmol/L had greater increases in serum ß-CTX (224% compared with 146%; P = 0.02) and TRAP5b (22.2% compared with 9.1%; P = 0.007), but smaller decreases in serum calcium (-1.3% compared with -1.9%; P = 0.005) and calcium-phosphorus product (-2.6% compared with -3.3%; P = 0.02) compared with those with serum 25(OH)D <75 nmol/L. CONCLUSIONS: Daily supplementation with 2000 IU cholecalciferol for 20 wk may promote bone formation in Chinese adults with vitamin D deficiency. More studies are needed to elucidate the potential clinical implications of BTMs.This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01998763.

Association analysis of polymorphisms in six keratin genes with wool traits in sheep.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the genetic effects of six keratin (KRT) genes on the wool traits of 418 Chinese Merino (Xinjiang type) (CMXT) individuals. METHODS: To explore the effects and association of six KRT genes on sheep wool traits, The polymerase chain reaction-based single-strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP), DNA sequencing, and the gene pyramiding effect methods were used. RESULTS: We report 20 mutation sites (single-nucleotide polymorphisms) within the six KRT genes, in which twelve induced silent mutations; five induced missense mutations and resulted in Ile→Thr, Glu→Asp, Gly→Ala, Ala→Ser, Se→His; two were nonsense mutations and one was a same-sense mutation. Association analysis showed that two genotypes of the KRT31 gene were significantly associated with fiber diameter (p<0.05); three genotypes of the KRT36 gene were significantly associated with wool fineness score and fiber diameter (p<0.05), three genotypes of the KRT38 gene were significantly associated with the number of crimps (p< 0.05); and three genotypes of the KRT85 gene were significantly associated with wool crimps score, body size, and fiber diameter (p<0.05). Analysis of the gene pyramiding effect between the different genotypes of the gene loci KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85, each genotype in a gene locus was combined with all the genotypes of another two gene loci and formed the different three loci combinations, indicated a total of 26 types of possible combined genotypes in the analyzed population. Compared with the other combined genotypes, the combinations CC-GG-II, CC-HH-IJ, CC-HH-JJ, DD-HH-JJ, CC-GH-IJ, and CC-GH-JJ at gene loci KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85, respectively, had a greater effect on wool traits (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that the mutation loci of KRT31, KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85 genes, as well as the combinations at gene loci KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85 in CMXT have significant effects on wool traits, suggesting that these genes are important candidate genes for wool traits, which will contribute to sheep breeding and provide a molecular basis for improved wool quality in sheep.

WITHDRAWN:Identification of Polymorphisms and Association of Five KAP Genes with Sheep Wool Traits.

Ahead of Print article withdrawn by publisher.

Catalytic Asymmetric Tandem Reaction of Tertiary Enamides: Expeditious Synthesis of Pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline Alkaloid Derivatives.

Reported is a new and efficient strategy for rapid construction of the chiral tetrahydropyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinolin-3(2H)-one structure from unique tertiary enamide synthons. A Cu(OTf)2 /chiral Pybox complex catalyzes the intramolecular enantioselective addition of tertiary enamides to ketonic carbonyls with subsequent diastereoselective interception of the resulting acyliminium by tethered electron-rich aryl moiety. The tandem reaction produces diverse tetrahydropyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinolin-3(2H)-one derivatives as the sole diastereoisomers in good to excellent yields with up to 98.5 % ee. The transformations of the resulting heterocycles into various hexahydropyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline derivatives were also demonstrated. The cyclization products, which are difficult to obtain by other synthetic means, are structural motifs found in many bioactive alkaloids.

Single-stage internal fixation for thoracolumbar spinal tuberculosis using 4 different surgical approaches.

STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective study was conducted on 148 spinal tuberculosis (TB) patients (M:F, 92:56; mean age, 39.7±12.3; range, 16-74 y) treated with anterior debridement and bone graft fusion with nail and screw internal fixation (nails+screws group); posterior pedicle screw fixation (pedicle screw group); vertebral arch pedicle internal fixation through a posterior route (posterior arch fixation group); or posterior debridement, bone graft fusion, and vertebral arch pedicle internal fixation (arch fixation group). OBJECTIVE: We investigated 4 variant surgical approaches for internal fixation of spinal TB. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: The effectiveness of single-stage surgical fixation for different degrees of spinal TB is a matter of debate. METHODS: Operation time and bleeding volume were recorded. Complications, American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) score, C-reactive protein, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate were examined preoperatively and 6 months after surgery. RESULTS: Overall, 78, 48, 16, and 6 patients underwent nails+screws, pedicle screws, arch fixation, and posterior arch fixation approaches, respectively. The mean operation times were 175.8±48.8, 308.5±76.7, 143.8±43.0, and 398.3±90.8, respectively (P<0.01). Mean blood transfusion volumes were 1227.1±988.2, 1771.7±794.7, 467.7±123.3, and 2833.3±1083.8 mL, respectively (P<0.01). Primary wound healing was achieved in 127 patients. No patients experienced spinal TB recurrence or failure of bone graft or fixation. All groups achieved significantly improved C-reactive protein and erythrocyte sedimentation rate, but significantly improved ASIA scores were only observed in the nails+screws and pedicle screw groups (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Surgical approach limitations and advantages should be considered based on the position and severity of spinal TB infection to maximize functional outcomes and minimize surgical risks.

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) and coating for improving preservation of whole and sliced Agaricus bisporus.

Freshness of mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) was related to the internal atmosphere composition during modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) experiments using polyvinyl chloride (PVC) wrap, polyethylene-1 (PE-1) and PE-2 films. The packaged mushrooms were stored at 12 °C for 7 days and lightness value, browning index, weight loss and maturity index were also measured. The results obtained showed that the whiteness of whole mushrooms varied significantly with the type of coating (chitosan and CaCl2), but not with the type of packaging films. It was evident that the extent of darkening in whole mushroom was greater than in sliced ones after coated. In addition, mushroom in PE-2 package exhibited the lowest weight loss due to the lower permeability of film. And the type of packaging films significantly affected the maturity index of mushroom, where PE-2 packaging most effectively lowered maturity index for both whole and sliced mushrooms. By considering the overall quality, it was obvious that PE-2 packaging combined with coating treatment was the most effective to improve the preservation of mushrooms stored at 12 °C up to 7 days and satisfy consumer acceptance.

Longitudinal association between accelerometer-derived rest-activity rhythm and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

OBJECTIVE: Rest-activity rhythm is an essential behavior for human health. However, the association between rest-activity rhythm and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate the association. METHODS: This study included 87,039 participants from the UK Biobank who had 7-day accelerometry data and were free of ASCVD at baseline. Relative amplitude was calculated as the difference between the most active continuous 10-h period (M10) and the least active continuous 5-h period (L5) in 24 h, and lower relative amplitude indicated the disruption of rest-activity rhythm. Cox proportional hazard model was used to examine the association of relative amplitude with ASCVD. Further, the linear association between relative amplitude and arterial stiffness measurements, including arterial stiffness index (ASI) and carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT), was examined. RESULTS: During a mean follow-up period of 6.80 ± 1.10 years, 2798 ASCVD cases were identified. A dose-response relationship was observed between relative amplitude and ASCVD risk (P for trend<0.001). The adjusted hazard ratio, for the highest vs the lowest quintile of relative amplitude, was 1.54 (95 % confidence interval: 1.31, 1.79). Further, we found significant association of lower relative amplitude with ASI and cIMT. The onset timing of M10 at ≤06:00, 09:00, 10:00, or ≥11:00, as opposed to the reference time of 07:00, was associated with higher ASCVD risk. CONCLUSIONS: Low rest-activity rhythm amplitude was associated with a higher risk of ASCVD. Rest-activity rhythm amplitude may provide a method to identify individuals at risk of ASCVD in public health and clinical practice.

Social isolation and the risk of Parkinson disease in the UK biobank study.

Parkinson disease (PD) has become one of the most rapidly growing causes of disability among the older population and social isolation is a major concern in the PD community. However, the relationship between social isolation and future risk of PD remains unclear. This study included 192,340 participants aged 60 or older who were free of dementia and PD at baseline from the UK Biobank study. Social isolation was measured using a composite score derived from three questions on number in household, frequency of friend/family visits, and leisure/social activities. Incident PD cases were identified through electronic health records. Multivariable-adjusted Cox regression models were used to compute the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Among the 192,340 participants (mean [standard deviation] age, 64.2 [2.9] years; 103,253 [53.7%] women), 89,075 (46.3%) participants were in the least isolated group and 26,161 (13.6%) were in the most isolated group. Over a median follow-up of 12.5 years, 2048 incident PD cases were documented. Compared to the least isolated group, the multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CIs) for PD were 1.00 (0.91-1.10) for the moderately isolated group and 1.19 (1.05-1.36) for the most isolated group (P-trend = 0.04). The observed association was independent of the genetic susceptibility to PD and consistent in subgroup analyses. Social isolation was associated with a higher risk of PD regardless of genetic risk. Our findings highlighted the importance of developing screening and intervention strategies for social isolation among older adults to reduce the risk of PD.