Airborne host-plant manipulation by whiteflies via an inducible blend of plant volatiles.

The whitefly Bemisia tabaci is one of the world's most important invasive crop pests, possibly because it manipulates plant defense signaling. Upon infestation by whiteflies, plants mobilize salicylic acid (SA)-dependent defenses, which mainly target pathogens. In contrast, jasmonic acid (JA)-dependent defenses are gradually suppressed in whitefly-infested plants. The down-regulation of JA defenses make plants more susceptible to insects, including whiteflies. Here, we report that this host-plant manipulation extends to neighboring plants via airborne signals. Plants respond to insect attack with the release of a blend of inducible volatiles. Perception of these volatiles by neighboring plants usually primes them to prepare for an imminent attack. Here, however, we show that whitefly-induced tomato plant volatiles prime SA-dependent defenses and suppress JA-dependent defenses, thus rendering neighboring tomato plants more susceptible to whiteflies. Experiments with volatiles from caterpillar-damaged and pathogen-infected plants, as well as with synthetic volatiles, confirm that whiteflies modify the quality of neighboring plants for their offspring via whitefly-inducible plant volatiles.

A novel mixed integer programming for multi-biomarker panel identification by distinguishing malignant from benign colorectal tumors.

Multi-biomarker panels can capture the nonlinear synergy among biomarkers and they are important to aid in the early diagnosis and ultimately battle complex diseases. However, identification of these multi-biomarker panels from case and control data is challenging. For example, the exhaustive search method is computationally infeasible when the data dimension is high. Here, we propose a novel method, MILP_k, to identify serum-based multi-biomarker panel to distinguish colorectal cancers (CRC) from benign colorectal tumors. Specifically, the multi-biomarker panel detection problem is modeled by a mixed integer programming to maximize the classification accuracy. Then we measured the serum profiling data for 101 CRC patients and 95 benign patients. The 61 biomarkers were analyzed individually and further their combinations by our method. We discovered 4 biomarkers as the optimal small multi-biomarker panel, including known CRC biomarkers CEA and IL-10 as well as novel biomarkers IMA and NSE. This multi-biomarker panel obtains leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV) accuracy to 0.7857 by nearest centroid classifier. An independent test of this panel by support vector machine (SVM) with threefold cross validation gets an AUC 0.8438. This greatly improves the predictive accuracy by 20% over the single best biomarker. Further extension of this 4-biomarker panel to a larger 13-biomarker panel improves the LOOCV to 0.8673 with independent AUC 0.8437. Comparison with the exhaustive search method shows that our method dramatically reduces the searching time by 1000-fold. Experiments on the early cancer stage samples reveal two panel of biomarkers and show promising accuracy. The proposed method allows us to select the subset of biomarkers with best accuracy to distinguish case and control samples given the number of selected biomarkers. Both receiver operating characteristic curve and precision-recall curve show our method's consistent performance gain in accuracy. Our method also shows its advantage in capturing synergy among selected biomarkers. The multi-biomarker panel far outperforms the simple combination of best single features. Close investigation of the multi-biomarker panel illustrates that our method possesses the ability to remove redundancy and reveals complementary biomarker combinations. In addition, our method is efficient and can select multi-biomarker panel with more than 5 biomarkers, for which the exhaustive methods fail. In conclusion, we propose a promising model to improve the clinical data interpretability and to serve as a useful tool for other complex disease studies. Our small multi-biomarker panel, CEA, IL-10, IMA, and NSE, may provide insights on the disease status of colorectal diseases. The implementation of our method in MATLAB is available via the website: http://doc.aporc.org/wiki/MILP_k.

An evaluation of Frankliniella occidentalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) and Frankliniella intonsa (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) performance on different plant leaves based on life history characteristics.

To compare the performance of Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) and native Frankliniella intonsa (Trybom) on cucumber and tomato leaves in laboratory, life history characters were investigated, and life tables were constructed using the method of age-stage, two-sex table life. Compared with tomato leaf, there were shorter total preoviposition period (TPOP), higher fecundity, longer female longevity, and higher intrinsic rate of increase (r) of both F. occidentalis and F. intonsa on cucumber leaf. Meanwhile, on cucumber leaf, the shorter TPOP, higher fecundity, longer female longevity, and higher value of r were found on population of F. intonsa but on tomato leaf which were found on population of F. occidentalis. From above, cucumber leaf was the preference to population development of both F. occidentalis and F. intonsa compared with tomato leaf. Nevertheless, on cucumber leaf, population of F. intonsa would grow faster than that of F. occidentalis, which was the opposite on tomato leaf. As to the population development in fields, much more factors would be taken into account, such as pollen, insecticide resistance, and effects of natural enemies etc.

Identification of four novel serum protein biomarkers in sepsis patients encoded by target genes of sepsis-related miRNAs.

The goal of the present study was to identify novel protein biomarkers from the target genes of six serum miRNAs that we identified previously in patients with sepsis. The target genes were predicted by bioinformatics analysis; the levels of the respective proteins in the sera of patients with sepsis were detected by ELISA. ACVR2A (activin A receptor, type IIA), FOXO1 (forkhead box O1), IHH (Indian hedgehog), STK4 (serine/threonine kinase 4) and DUSP3 (dual specificity phosphatase 3) were predicted to be the targets of the six miRNAs, and their encoded proteins were used for biomarker identification. Levels of ACVR2A (P<0.01) and FOXO1 (P<0.01) were significantly different among normal controls, patients with sepsis, patients with severe sepsis and patients with septic shock. Furthermore, levels of ACVR2A (P=0.025), FOXO1 (P<0.001), IHH (P=0.001) and STK4 (P=0.001) were differentially expressed in survivors and non-survivors. DUSP3 levels were not significantly different between any groups. Conjoin analysis of the four differentially expressed proteins showed that the area under the curve of the predictive probabilities was 0.875 [95% CI (confidence interval): 0.785-0.965], which was higher than the SOFA (Sequential Organ Failure Assessment) and APACHE II (Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II) scores. When the value of predictive probabilities was 0.449, the four proteins yielded a sensitivity of 68% and a specificity of 91%. Dynamic changes in ACVR2A, FOXO1 and IHH levels showed differential expression between survivors and non-survivors at all time points. On the basis of a combined analysis of the four identified proteins, their predictive value of 28-day mortality of patients with sepsis was better than the SOFA or APACHE II scores.

Serum miR-122 levels are related to coagulation disorders in sepsis patients.

BACKGROUND: Coagulation abnormalities may have a major impact on the outcome of sepsis in patients. This study aimed to explore the relationship between miRNA levels and coagulation disorders during sepsis. METHODS: Blood samples from 123 sepsis patients were collected on the day of admission and another 45 sepsis patients on days 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 14 following admission to the intensive care unit. miR-223, miR-15a, miR-16, miR-122, miR-193b*, and miR-483-5p levels were evaluated by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Based on the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC) score, sepsis patients were divided into coagulation abnormal (CA) group and coagulation normal (CN) group. RESULTS: Only the levels of miR-122 were significantly higher in CA patients than in CN patients (p<0.001). Serum levels of miR-122 were correlated to the serum activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) ratios (R=0.426, p=0.008) and the fibrinogen (FIB; R=0.398, p=0.008) and antithrombin III (R=0.913, p<0.001) levels. In addition, Pearson's correlation coefficients for alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) with miR-122 were 0.663 (p<0.001) and 0.445 (p=0.001), respectively. In the 45 patients, the miR-122 levels were significantly higher on day 1, 3, 7, and 10 in the CA group than in the CN group, and no difference in the ISTH-DIC scores was evident. CONCLUSIONS: Serum levels of miR-122 were correlated to the coagulation disorder in sepsis patients.

Transcriptome data reveal beneficial effects of Rickettsia (Rickettsiales: Rickettsiaceae) on Bemisia tabaci(Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) through nutritional factors and defense mechanisms.

Whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) is a destructive insect pest of many crops. Rickettsia infection in different cryptic species of B. tabaci has been observed worldwide. Understanding the interactions between these 2 organisms is critical to developing Rickettsia-based strategies to control B. tabaci and thereby reduce the transmission of related vector-borne viruses. In this study, we investigated the effects of Rickettsia infection on the biological characteristics of the Middle East Asia Minor 1 (MEAM1) strain of B. tabaci through biological analysis of infected and uninfected individuals. The results of this study suggest that Rickettsia may confer fitness benefits. These benefits include increased fertility, improved survival rates, accelerated development, and resulted in female bias. We also investigated the transcriptomics impact of Rickettsia infection on B. tabaci by performing a comparative RNA-seq analysis of nymphs and adult females, both with and without the infection. Our analysis revealed 218 significant differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in infected nymphs compared to uninfected ones and 748 significant DEGs in infected female adults compared to their uninfected whiteflies. Pathway analysis further revealed that Rickettsia can affect many important metabolic pathways in whiteflies. The results suggest that Rickettsia plays an essential role in energy metabolism, and nutrient synthesis in the B. tabaci MEAM1, and depends on metabolites obtained from the host to ensure its survival. Overall, our findings suggest that Rickettsia has beneficial effects on B. tabaci and offered insights into the potential molecular mechanisms governing the interactions between Rickettsia and B. tabaci MEAM1.

Rickettsia transmission from whitefly to plants benefits herbivore insects but is detrimental to fungal and viral pathogens.

Bacterial endosymbionts play important roles in the life histories of herbivorous insects by impacting their development, survival, reproduction, and stress tolerance. How endosymbionts may affect the interactions between plants and insect herbivores is still largely unclear. Here, we show that endosymbiotic Rickettsia belli can provide mutual benefits also outside of their hosts when the sap-sucking whitefly Bemisia tabaci transmits them to plants. This transmission facilitates the spread of Rickettsia but is shown to also enhance the performance of the whitefly and co-infesting caterpillars. In contrast, Rickettsia infection enhanced plant resistance to several pathogens. Inside the plants, Rickettsia triggers the expression of salicylic acid-related genes and the two pathogen-resistance genes TGA 2.1 and VRP, whereas they repressed genes of the jasmonic acid pathway. Performance experiments using wild type and mutant tomato plants confirmed that Rickettsia enhances the plants' suitability for insect herbivores but makes them more resistant to fungal and viral pathogens. Our results imply that endosymbiotic Rickettsia of phloem-feeding insects affects plant defenses in a manner that facilitates their spread and transmission. This novel insight into how insects can exploit endosymbionts to manipulate plant defenses also opens possibilities to interfere with their ability to do so as a crop protection strategy. IMPORTANCE: Most insects are associated with symbiotic bacteria in nature. These symbionts play important roles in the life histories of herbivorous insects by impacting their development, survival, reproduction as well as stress tolerance. Rickettsia is one important symbiont to the agricultural pest whitefly Bemisia tabaci. Here, for the first time, we revealed that the persistence of Rickettsia symbionts in tomato leaves significantly changed the defense pattern of tomato plants. These changes benefit both sap-feeding and leaf-chewing herbivore insects, such as increasing the fecundity of whitefly adults, enhancing the growth and development of the noctuid Spodoptera litura, but reducing the pathogenicity of Verticillium fungi and TYLCV virus to tomato plants distinctively. Our study unraveled a new horizon for the multiple interaction theories among plant-insect-bacterial symbionts.

Jasmonate and ethylene signaling mediate whitefly-induced interference with indirect plant defense in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Upon herbivore attack, plants activate an indirect defense, that is, the release of a complex mixture of volatiles that attract natural enemies of the herbivore. When plants are simultaneously exposed to two herbivore species belonging to different feeding guilds, one herbivore may interfere with the indirect plant defense induced by the other herbivore. However, little is understood about the mechanisms underlying such interference. Here, we address the effect of herbivory by the phloem-feeding whitefly Bemisia tabaci on the induced indirect defense of Arabidopsis thaliana plants to Plutella xylostella caterpillars, that is, the attraction of the parasitoid wasp Diadegma semiclausum. Assays with various Arabidopsis mutants reveal that B. tabaci infestation interferes with indirect plant defense induced by P. xylostella, and that intact jasmonic acid and ethylene signaling are required for such interference caused by B. tabaci. Chemical analysis of plant volatiles showed that the composition of the blend emitted in response to the caterpillars was significantly altered by co-infestation with whiteflies. Moreover, whitefly infestation also had a considerable effect on the transcriptomic response of the plant to the caterpillars. Understanding the mechanisms underlying a plant's responses to multiple attackers will be important for the development of crop protection strategies in a multi-attacker context.

Feeding by whiteflies suppresses downstream jasmonic acid signaling by eliciting salicylic acid signaling.

Phloem-feeding whiteflies in the species complex Bemisia tabaci cause extensive crop damage worldwide. One of the reasons for their "success" is their ability to suppress the effectual jasmonic acid (JA) defenses of the host plant. However, little is understood about the mechanisms underlying whitefly suppression of JA-regulated defenses. Here, we showed that the expression of salicylic acid (SA)-responsive genes (EDS1 and PR1) in Arabidopsis thaliana was significantly enhanced during feeding by whitefly nymphs. Whereas upstream JA-responsive genes (LOX2 and OPR3) also were induced, the downstream JA-responsive gene (VSP1) was repressed, i.e., whiteflies only suppressed downstream JA signaling. Gene-expression analyses with various Arabidopsis mutants, including NahG, npr-1, ein2-1, and dde2-2, revealed that SA signaling plays a key role in the suppression of downstream JA defenses by whitefly feeding. Assays confirmed that SA activation enhanced whitefly performance by suppressing downstream JA defenses.

Reproduction of the solenopsis mealybug, Phenacoccus solenopsis: males play an important role.

The solenopsis mealybug, Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), is an aggressive pest threatening crops worldwide. The biology of P. solenopsis has been described in several studies, but detailed information on the reproduction of P. solenopsis has not been investigated. The results of our study showed: 1) no progeny could be produced by virgins; 2) apoptosis of follicle cells, which occurs when the eggs begin to develop, did not happen in virgins; and 3) oosorption occurred in the unfertilized eggs. This suggests that P. solenopsis is an obligate amphimictic species, and resorption of developed eggs fits the "wait to reproduce" oosorption hypothesis. Compared to females that mated when they were two days old, the females that mated 30 days after eclosion had lower reproductive output and longer adult lifespans, but had higher reproductive output and shorter lifespan than those of the unmated females. Such a phenomenon suggests that resources obtained from eggs can be allocated for survival until conditions for reproduction improve. The results of this study provide evidence for a trade-off between survival and future reproduction: delayed reproductive conditions trigger physiological states geared toward survival at the expense of reproduction. The mating history of the males had no effect on progeny production.

[Analysis of clinical features among severe or critical pregnant women in different trimesters with 2009 pandemic H1N1 infection].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the disease course and outcomes of severe or critical pregnant women with 2009 pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1) infection in China. METHODS: A retrospective observational study was conducted for 394 severe or critical pregnant women with pH1N1 influenza admitted into hospital in 27 Chinese provinces from September 1, 2009 to December 31, 2009. Their clinical features in different trimesters were analyzed. The viral infection of pH1N1 was verified by real-time reverse transcription (rRT)-PCR. Severe and critical cases were defined according to the 2009 H1N1 clinical guidelines. RESULTS: Among them, 374 (94.9%) were infected in the second or third trimester. Fever and cough were the most common symptoms in all trimesters. However, hemoptysis, dyspnea and associated pneumonia were likely to occur in the second or third trimester. The ratio of required mechanical ventilation in the second or third trimester (44.7%, 167/374) was significantly higher than that in the first trimester (3/20). Among 77 mortality cases, 72.7% (56/77) died in the third trimester. Pregnancy was terminated after the onset of pH1N1 symptoms in 52.5%(207/394) pregnant women. And 57.0%(118/207) of them had delivery < 37 weeks and 29.0%(60/207) fetuses deceased. CONCLUSION: A clinician should be on a high alert for pH1N1 infection in pregnant women, particularly in the second or third trimester.

[Meta-analysis of the efficacy and safety of telaprevir combined with peginterferon alfa plus ribavirin in patients with chronic hepatitis C].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of telaprevir combined with peginterferon alfa (Peg-IFNa) plus ribavirin (RBV) (collectively, TPR therapy) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) using a meta-analysis approach. METHODS: The Pubmed literature database was searched for randomized controlled trials of TRP therapy in CHC patients published between 2009 and 2011. The following outcome data was extracted for meta-analysis of efficacy: sustained virological response (SVR), defined as serum HCV RNA of less than 1000 copies/ml at end-of-treatment (week 24); rapid virological response (RVR), defined as serum HCV RNA of less than 1000 copies/ml at treatment week 4; recurrence, defined as serum HCV RNA of less than 1000 copies/mL at end-of-treatment and more than 1000 copies/ml at follow-up (week 24 after treatment completion). The pooled odds ratio (OR) or relative risk (RR) were calculated, with 95% confidence interval (CI). Heterogeneity was assessed by the Chi-squared test based on the Q statistic. RESULTS: Six studies of TPR triple therapy, representing a total of 2677 CHC patients, were included in the meta-analysis. Among the 1850 patients who received TPR, 56.3% (n = 1041) achieved RVR, 66.8% (n = 1235) achieved SVR, and 12.1% (n = 176/1460) experienced recurrence. Among the 827 patients who received PR double-therapy, 7.0% (n = 58) achieved RVR, 35.8% (n = 296) achieved SVR, and 32.3% (n = 145/449) experienced recurrence. The TRP group had significantly higher rates of RVR (OR = 29.83, 95% CI: 16.16 to 55.05) and SVR (OR = 3.97, 95% CI: 2.58 to 6.11) than the PR group (both P less than 0.01), and significantly lower rate of recurrence (RR = 0.36, 95% CI: 0.24 to 0.56, P less than 0.01). CONCLUSION: The therapeutic effect of research group is better than that of control group, suggesting that ornithine aspartate combined with naloxone treatment in hepatic encephalopathy is worthy of promoting.

Diagnostic value of matrix metalloproteinases 2, 7 and 9 in urine for early detection of colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: A noninvasive biomarker with high diagnostic performance is urgently needed for the early diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC). AIM: To evaluate the diagnostic value of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) 2, 7 and 9 in urine for CRC. METHODS: Of 59 healthy controls, 47 patients with colon polyps and 82 patients with CRC were included in this study. Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in serum and MMP2, MMP7, and MMP9 in urine were detected. The combined diagnostic model of the indicators was established by binary logistic regression. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) of the subjects was used to evaluate the independent and combined diagnostic value of the indicators. RESULTS: The MMP2, MMP7, MMP9, and CEA levels in the CRC group differed significantly from levels in the healthy controls (P < 0.05). The levels of MMP7, MMP9, and CEA also differed significantly between the CRC group and the colon polyps group (P < 0.05). The area under the curve (AUC) distinguishing between the healthy control and the CRC patients using the joint model with CEA, MMP2, MMP7 and MMP9 was 0.977, and the sensitivity and specificity were 95.10% and 91.50%, respectively. For early-stage CRC, the AUC was 0.975, and the sensitivity and specificity were 94.30% and 98.30%, respectively. For advanced stage CRC, the AUC was 0.979, and the sensitivity and specificity were 95.70% and 91.50%, respectively. Using CEA, MMP7 and MMP9 to jointly established a model distinguishing the colorectal polyp group from the CRC group, the AUC was 0.849, and the sensitivity and specificity were 84.10% and 70.20%, respectively. For early-stage CRC, the AUC was 0.818, and the sensitivity and specificity were 76.30% and 72.30%, respectively. For advanced stage CRC, the AUC was 0.875, and the sensitivity and specificity were 81.80% and 72.30%, respectively. CONCLUSION: MMP2, MMP7 and MMP 9 may exhibit diagnostic value for the early detection of CRC and may serve as auxiliary diagnostic markers for CRC.

Genes expression profiling of peripheral blood cells of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma) is often diagnosed at an advanced stage with poor prognosis. Peripheral blood may be useful in cancer classification, and therefore we investigated the gene expression found by Affymetrix HG-U133 Plus2.0 microarray, with samples from nine HCC patients and five healthy NC (normal controls). A total of 726 probe sets showed significant differences based on the criteria of P<0.05 and absolute fold change >2. The genes were related to many biological functions, including immune response, transcription regulation and metabolism processes. Ten genes [IL-8 (interleukin 8), GOS2 (G0 /G1 switch gene 2), CXCR4 (CXC chemokine receptor 4), FOS, RPS24 (40S ribosomal protein S24), HAP90AA1, PFDN5, RPL27, GZMA and PFN1] showing significant differences were confirmed by real-time PCR in 54 HCC patients and 56 healthy NC. Seven genes [IL-8, GOS2, CXCR4, FOS, RPS24, HSP90AA1 (heat shock protein 90AA1) and PFN1] showed significant difference both in RT-PCR (reverse transcription-PCR) and microarray. Expression of IL-8 and FOS proteins was up-regulated in HCC compared with healthy controls. A gene signature in peripheral blood which can distinguish HCC patients and healthy controls may have been identified.

Clinical features and risk factors for severe and critical pregnant women with 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza infection in China.

BACKGROUND: 2009 pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1) influenza posed an increased risk of severe illness among pregnant women. Data on risk factors associated with death of pregnant women and neonates with pH1N1 infections are limited outside of developed countries. METHODS: Retrospective observational study in 394 severe or critical pregnant women admitted to a hospital with pH1N1 influenza from Sep. 1, 2009 to Dec. 31, 2009. rRT-PCR testing was used to confirm infection. In-hospital mortality was the primary endpoint of this study. Univariable logistic analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the potential factors on admission that might be associated with the maternal and neonatal mortality. RESULTS: 394 pregnant women were included, 286 were infected with pH1N1 in the third trimester. 351 had pneumonia, and 77 died. A PaO(2)/FiO(2) ≤ 200 (odds ratio (OR), 27.16; 95% confidence interval (CI), 2.64-279.70) and higher BMI (i.e. ≥ 30) on admission (OR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.09 to 1.47) were independent risk factors for maternal death. Of 211 deliveries, 146 neonates survived. Premature delivery (OR, 4.17; 95% CI, 1.19-14.56) was associated neonatal mortality. Among 186 patients who received mechanical ventilation, 83 patients were treated with non-invasive ventilation (NIV) and 38 were successful with NIV. The death rate was lower among patients who initially received NIV than those who were initially intubated (24/83, 28.9% vs 43/87, 49.4%; p = 0.006). Septic shock was an independent risk factor for failure of NIV. CONCLUSIONS: Severe hypoxemia and higher BMI on admission were associated with adverse outcomes for pregnant women. Preterm delivery was a risk factor for neonatal death among pregnant women with pH1N1 influenza infection. NIV may be useful in selected pregnant women without septic shock.

Whiteflies interfere with indirect plant defense against spider mites in Lima bean.

Plants under herbivore attack are able to initiate indirect defense by synthesizing and releasing complex blends of volatiles that attract natural enemies of the herbivore. However, little is known about how plants respond to infestation by multiple herbivores, particularly if these belong to different feeding guilds. Here, we report the interference by a phloem-feeding insect, the whitefly Bemisia tabaci, with indirect plant defenses induced by spider mites (Tetranychus urticae) in Lima bean (Phaseolus lunatus) plants. Additional whitefly infestation of spider-mite infested plants resulted in a reduced attraction of predatory mites (Phytoseiulus persimilis) compared to attraction to plants infested by spider mites only. This interference is shown to result from the reduction in (E)-beta-ocimene emission from plants infested by both spider mites and whiteflies. When using exogenous salicylic acid (SA) application to mimic B. tabaci infestation, we observed similar results in behavioral and chemical analyses. Phytohormone and gene-expression analyses revealed that B. tabaci infestation, as well as SA application, inhibited spider mite-induced jasmonic acid (JA) production and reduced the expression of two JA-regulated genes, one of which encodes for the P. lunatus enzyme beta-ocimene synthase that catalyzes the synthesis of (E)-beta-ocimene. Remarkably, B. tabaci infestation concurrently inhibited SA production induced by spider mites. We therefore conclude that in dual-infested Lima bean plants the suppression of the JA signaling pathway by whitefly feeding is not due to enhanced SA levels.

Blood index panel for gastric cancer detection.

BACKGROUND: Gastric cancer is a common malignant tumor. Early detection and diagnosis are crucial for the prevention and treatment of gastric cancer. AIM: To develop a blood index panel that may improve the diagnostic value for discriminating gastric cancer and gastric polyps. METHODS: Thirteen tumor-related detection indices, 38 clinical biochemical indices and 10 cytokine indices were examined in 139 gastric cancer patients and 40 gastric polyp patients to build the model. An additional 68 gastric cancer patients and 22 gastric polyp patients were enrolled for validation. After area under the curve evaluation and univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Five tumor-related detection indices, 12 clinical biochemical indices and 1 cytokine index showed significant differences between the gastric cancer and gastric polyp groups. Carbohydrate antigen (CA) 724, phosphorus (P) and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) were included in the blood index panel, and the area under the curve (AUC) of the index panel was 0.829 (0.754, 0.905). After validation, the AUC was 0.811 (0.700, 0.923). Compared to the conventional index CA724, the blood index panel showed significantly increased diagnostic value. CONCLUSION: We developed an index model that included CA724, P and IMA to discriminate the gastric cancer and gastric polyp groups, which may be a potential diagnostic method for clinical practice.

Evaluation of the diagnostic value of serum-based proteomics for colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a highly malignant cancer with a high incidence and mortality in China. It is urgent to find a diagnostic marker with higher sensitivity and specificity than the traditional approaches for CRC diagnosis. AIM: To provide new ideas for the diagnosis of CRC based on serum proteomics. METHODS: Specimens from 83 healthy people, 62 colon polyp (CRP) patients, and 101 CRC patients were analyzed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The diagnostic value of the profiles of differentially expressed proteins was then analyzed. RESULTS: Compared with the healthy control group, CRC patients had elevated expression of 5 proteins and reduced expression of 14 proteins. The area under the curve (AUC) for a differentially expressed protein with a mass-to-charge ratio of 2022.34 was the largest; the AUC was 0.843, which was higher than the AUC of 0.717 observed with carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), and the sensitivity and specificity of this identified marker were 75.3% and 79.5%, respectively. After cross-validation, the accuracy of diagnosis using levels of this differentially expressed protein was 82.37%. Compared with the CRP group, the expression of 3 proteins in the serum of CRC patients was elevated and 11 proteins were expressed at reduced levels. Proteins possessing mass-to-charge ratio values of 2899.38 and 877.3 were selected to establish a classification tree model. The results showed that the accuracy of CRC diagnosis was 89.5%, the accuracy of CRP diagnosis was 81.6%, and the overall accuracy of this approach was 86.3%. The overall sensitivity and specificity of diagnosis using the proteomics approach were 81.8% and 66.75%, respectively. The sensitivities and specificities of diagnoses based on CEA and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 expression were 55.6% and 91.3% and 65.4% and 65.2%, respectively. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated that serum proteomics may be helpful for the detection of CRC, and it may assist clinical practice for CRC diagnosis.

Genome-wide methylation profiling of early colorectal cancer using an Illumina Infinium Methylation EPIC BeadChip.

BACKGROUND: DNA methylation is a part of epigenetic modification, that is closely related to the growth and development of colorectal cancer (CRC). Specific methylated genes and methylated diagnostic models of tumors have become current research focuses. The methylation status of circulating DNA in plasma might serve as a potential biomarker for CRC. AIM: To investigate genome-wide methylation pattern in early CRC using the Illumina Infinium Human Methylation 850K BeadChip. METHODS: The 850K Methylation BeadChip was used to analyze the genome-wide methylation status of early CRC patients (n = 5) and colorectal adenoma patients (n = 5). Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways enrichment analyses were performed on the selected differentially methylated sites to further discover candidate methylation biomarkers in plasma. RESULTS: A total of 1865 methylated CpG sites with significant differences were detected, including 676 hypermethylated sites and 1189 hypomethylated sites. The distribution of these sites covered from the 1st to 22nd chromosomes and are mainly distributed on the gene body and gene promoter region. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the functions of these genes were related to biological regulation, molecular binding, transcription factor activity and signal transduction pathway. CONCLUSION: The study demonstrated that the Illumina Infinium Human Methylation 850K BeadChip can be used to investigate genome-wide methylation status of plasma DNA in early CRC and colorectal adenoma patients.

Early detection of colorectal cancer based on circular DNA and common clinical detection indicators.

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer worldwide, and it is the second leading cause of death from cancer in the world, accounting for approximately 9% of all cancer deaths. Early detection of CRC is urgently needed in clinical practice. AIM: To build a multi-parameter diagnostic model for early detection of CRC. METHODS: Total 59 colorectal polyps (CRP) groups, and 101 CRC patients (38 early-stage CRC and 63 advanced CRC) for model establishment. In addition, 30 CRP groups, and 62 CRC patients (30 early-stage CRC and 32 advanced CRC) were separately included to validate the model. 51 commonly used clinical detection indicators and the 4 extrachromosomal circular DNA markers NDUFB7, CAMK1D, PIK3CD and PSEN2 that we screened earlier. Four multi-parameter joint analysis methods: binary logistic regression analysis, discriminant analysis, classification tree and neural network to establish a multi-parameter joint diagnosis model. RESULTS: Neural network included carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), ischemia-modified albumin (IMA), sialic acid (SA), PIK3CD and lipoprotein a (LPa) was chosen as the optimal multi-parameter combined auxiliary diagnosis model to distinguish CRP and CRC group, when it differentiated 59 CRP and 101 CRC, its overall accuracy was 90.8%, its area under the curve (AUC) was 0.959 (0.934, 0.985), and the sensitivity and specificity were 91.5% and 82.2%, respectively. After validation, when distinguishing based on 30 CRP and 62 CRC patients, the AUC was 0.965 (0.930-1.000), and its sensitivity and specificity were 66.1% and 70.0%. When distinguishing based on 30 CRP and 32 early-stage CRC patients, the AUC was 0.960 (0.916-1.000), with a sensitivity and specificity of 87.5% and 90.0%, distinguishing based on 30 CRP and 30 advanced CRC patients, the AUC was 0.970 (0.936-1.000), with a sensitivity and specificity of 96.7% and 86.7%. CONCLUSION: We built a multi-parameter neural network diagnostic model included CEA, IMA, SA, PIK3CD and LPa for early detection of CRC, compared to the conventional CEA, it showed significant improvement.