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An N-glycosidic polysaccharide-peptide complex CMPS-80 from the fruiting body of C. militaris modulates ceRNA network in the liver of apoE(−/−) mice.

Background Cordyceps militaris is cultured widely as an edible mushroom and accumulating evidence in mice have demonstrated that the polysaccharides of Cordyceps species have lipid-lowering effects. However, lipid metabolism in mice is significantly different from that in humans, making a full understanding of the mechanisms at play critical. Methods After 5 months, the hamsters were weighed and sampled under anesthesia after overnight fasting. The lipid-lowering effect and mechanisms of the polysaccharide CM1 was investigated by cellular and molecular technologies. Furthermore, the effect of the polysaccharide CM1 (100 μg/mL) on inhibiting adipocyte differentiation was investigated in vitro. Results CM1, a polysaccharide from C. militaris, significantly decreased plasma total cholesterol, triglyceride and epididymal fat index in LDLR(+/−) hamsters, which have a human-like lipid profile. After 5 months’ administration, CM1 decreased the plasma level of apolipoprotein B48, modulated the expression of key genes and proteins in liver, small intestine, and epididymal fat. CM1 also inhibited preadipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells by downregulating the key genes involved in lipid droplet formation. Conclusions The polysaccharide CM1 lowers lipid and adipocyte differentiation by several pathways, and it has potential applications for hyperlipidemia prevention.

Neurological diseases impose a tremendous and increasing burden on global health, and there is currently no curative agent. Puerarin, a natural isoflavone extracted from the dried root of Pueraria montana var. Lobata (Willd.) Sanjappa and Predeep, is an active ingredient with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-apoptotic, and autophagy-regulating effects. It has great potential in the treatment of neurological and other diseases. Phosphatidylinositol 3-kinases/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) signal pathway is a crucial signal transduction mechanism that regulates biological processes such as cell regeneration, apoptosis, and cognitive memory in the central nervous system, and is closely related to the pathogenesis of nervous system diseases. Accumulating evidence suggests that the excellent neuroprotective effect of puerarin may be related to the regulation of the PI3K/Akt signal pathway. Here, we summarized the main biological functions and neuroprotective effects of puerarin via activating PI3K/Akt signal pathway in neurological diseases. This paper illustrates that puerarin, as a neuroprotective agent, can protect nerve cells and delay the progression of neurological diseases through the PI3K/Akt signal pathway.

Hyperlipidemia is one major cause of atherosclerosis, which is a basic pathological change of cardiovascular diseases. Polysaccharide is a water-soluble component with lipid-lowering effects. In this study, alkaline-extracted polysaccharides were obtained from the fruiting body of C. militaris. Polysaccharides were purified via anion exchange and size exclusion chromatography. Their structural characteristics were investigated via chemical and spectroscopic methods. CM3I was mainly composed of →4)α-D-Glcp(1 → glycosyls and differed from starch due to the presence of →4,6)β-D-Glcp(1 → glycosyls. CM3II was characterized by its backbone, which was composed of →4)-β-D-Manp(1 → 6)-α-D-Manp(1 → 6)-β-D-Manp(1 → linked glycosyls, and especially the presence of O-methyl. Moreover, CM3II exhibited powerful anti-atherosclerotic effects via lowering plasma lipid levels in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice. The underlying mechanisms were attributed to its promoting effect on LXRα and inhibitory effect on SREBP-2. Collectively, CM3I and CM3II are different from the previously reported polysaccharides from C. militaris, and CM3II has a potential application in hypolipidemia and anti-atherosclerosis.

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The remodeling of root architecture is regarded as a major development to improve the plant’s adaptivity to phosphate (Pi)-deficient conditions. The WRKY transcription factors family has been reported to regulate the Pi-deficiency-induced systemic responses by affecting Pi absorption or transportation. Whether these transcription factors act as a regulator to mediate the Pi-deficiency-induced remodeling of root architecture, a typical local response, is still unclear. Here, we identified an Arabidopsis transcription factor, WRKY33, that acted as a negative regulator to mediate the Pi-deficiency-induced remodeling of root architecture. The disruption of WRKY33 in wrky33-2 mutant increased the plant’s low Pi sensitivity by further inhibiting the primary root growth and promoting the formation of root hair. Furthermore, we revealed that WRKY33 negatively regulated the remodeling of root architecture by controlling the transcriptional expression of ALMT1 under Pi-deficient conditions, which further mediated the Fe3+ accumulation in root tips to inhibit the root growth. In conclusion, this study demonstrates a previously unrecognized signaling crosstalk between WRKY33 and the ALMT1-mediated malate transport system to regulate the Pi deficiency responses.

Cordyceps militaris is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine. Studies have demonstrated that the polysaccharides of C. militaris have various bioactivities. However, their mechanisms of action remain unclear. We previously purified a water-soluble polysaccharide CM1 from C. militaris and found that it has a cholesterol efflux improving capacity. This study further investigates the effect of CM1 in anti-atherosclerosis and its underlying mechanism in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice. Our data indicated that CM1 significantly decreased the total cholesterol and triglyceride in the plasma of mice, and decreased lipid deposition and formation of atherosclerotic plaque in a dose-dependent manner. Integrated bioinformatics analysis revealed that CM1 interacted with multiple signaling pathways, including those involved in lipid metabolism, inflammatory response, oxidoreductase activity and fluid shear stress, to exert its anti-atherosclerotic effect. Molecular technology analysis showed that CM1 enhanced the expression of proteins involved in lipid metabolism, reduced the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 and tumor necrosis factor-α in the aorta, and decreased the content of oxidative products by enhancing the activities of antioxidant enzymes. Microarray analysis and biochemical data indicated that CM1 can improve lipid metabolism, reduce inflammation and oxidative stress. Taken together, CM1 could be used for the treatment of hyperlipidemia and atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases.

Plant elicitor peptides (Peps) are damage/danger-associated molecular patterns that are perceived by the receptor-like kinases, PEPR1 and PEPR2, to enhance innate immunity and to inhibit root growth in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Here, we show that Arabidopsis Pep1 inhibits root growth in a PEPR2-dependent manner, which is accompanied by swelling epidermal and cortex cells and root hair formation in the transition zone (TZ). These Pep1-induced changes were mimicked by exogenous auxin application and were suppressed in the auxin perception mutants transport inhibitor response1 (tir1) and tir1 afb1 afb2. Pep1-induced auxin accumulation in the TZ region preceded cell expansion in roots. Because local auxin distribution depends on PIN-type auxin transporters, we examined Pep1-PEPR-induced root growth inhibition in several pin mutants and found that pin2 was highly sensitive but pin3 was less sensitive to Pep1. The pin2 pin3 double mutant was as sensitive to Pep1 treatment as wild-type plants. Pep1 reduced the abundance of PIN2 in the plasma membrane through activating endocytosis while increasing PIN3 expression in the TZ, leading to changes in local auxin distribution and inhibiting root growth. These results suggest that Pep-PEPR signaling undergoes crosstalk with auxin accumulation to control cell expansion and differentiation in roots during immune responses.

Plant elicitor peptides (Peps) are damage/danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) that are derived from precursor proteins PROPEPs and perceived by a pair of leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinases (LRR-RLKs), PEPR1 and PEPR2, to enhance innate immunity and to inhibit root growth in Arabidopsis thaliana. In this study, we show that Arabidopsis Pep1 inhibits the root growth by interfering with pH signaling, as acidic condition increased, but neutral and alkaline conditions decreased the Pep1 effect on inhibiting the root growth. The perception of Pep1 to PEPRs activated the plasma membrane-localized H+-ATPases (PM H+-ATPases) &mdash, the pump proton in plant cell&mdash, to extrude the protons into apoplast, and induced an overly acidic environment in apoplastic space, which further promoted the cell swelling in root apex and inhibited root growth. Furthermore, we revealed that pump proton AUTOINHIBITED H+-ATPase 2 (AHA2) physically interacted with PEPR2 and served downstream of the Pep1-PEPRs signaling pathway to regulate Pep1-induced protons extrusion and root growth inhibition. In conclusion, this study demonstrates a previously unrecognized signaling crosstalk between Pep1 and pH signaling to regulate root growth.

Plants can reduce or eliminate the damage caused by herbicides and gain herbicide resistance, which is an important theoretical basis for the development of herbicide-resistant crops at this stage. Thus, discovering novel herbicide-resistant genes to produce diverse herbicide-resistant crop species is of great value. The glycosyltransferases that commonly exist in plant kingdom modify the receptor molecules to change their physical characteristics and biological activities, and thus possess an important potential to be used in the herbicide-resistance breeding. Here, we identified a novel herbicide-induced UDP-glycosyltransferase 91C1 (UGT91C1) from Arabidopsis thaliana and demonstrated its glucosylating activity toward sulcotrione, a kind of triketone herbicides widely used in the world. Overexpression of UGT91C1 gene enhanced the Arabidopsis tolerance to sulcotrione. While, ugt91c1 mutant displayed serious damage and reduced chlorophyll contents in the presence of sulcotrione, suggesting an important role of UGT91C1 in herbicide detoxification through glycosylation. Moreover, it was also noted that UGT91C1 can affect tyrosine metabolism by reducing the sulcotrione toxicity. Together, our identification of glycosyltransferase UGT91C1, as a potential gene conferring herbicide detoxification through glucosylation, may open up a new possibility for herbicide resistant breeding of crop plants and environmental phytoremediation.

Plant elicitor peptides (Peps) are damage/danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) that are perceived by a pair of receptor-like kinases, PEPR1 and PEPR2, to enhance innate immunity and induce the growth inhibition of root in Arabidopsis thaliana. In this study, we show that PEPR1 and PEPR2 function vitally in roots to regulate the root immune responses when treating the roots with bacterial pathogen Pst DC3000. PEPR2, rather than PEPR1, played a predominant role in the perception of Pep1 in the roots and further triggered a strong ROS accumulation&mdash, the substance acts as an antimicrobial agent or as a secondary messenger in plant cells. Consistently, seedlings mutating two major ROS-generating enzyme genes, respiratory burst oxidase homologs D and F (RBOHD and RBOHF), abolished the root ROS accumulation and impaired the growth inhibition of the roots induced by Pep1. Furthermore, we revealed that botrytis-induced kinase 1 (BIK1) physically interacted with PEPRs and RBOHD/F, respectively, and served downstream of the Pep1-PEPRs signaling pathway to regulate Pep1-induced ROS production and root growth inhibition. In conclusion, this study demonstrates a previously unrecognized signaling crosstalk between Pep1 and ROS signaling to regulate root immune response and root growth.

Plant elicitor peptides (Peps) are damage/danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) that are perceived by a pair of receptor-like kinases, PEPR1 and PEPR2, to enhance innate immunity and induce the growth inhibition of root in Arabidopsis thaliana. In this study, we show that PEPR1 and PEPR2 function vitally in roots to regulate the root immune responses when treating the roots with bacterial pathogen Pst DC3000. PEPR2, rather than PEPR1, played a predominant role in the perception of Pep1 in the roots and further triggered a strong ROS accumulation—the substance acts as an antimicrobial agent or as a secondary messenger in plant cells. Consistently, seedlings mutating two major ROS-generating enzyme genes, respiratory burst oxidase homologs D and F (RBOHD and RBOHF), abolished the root ROS accumulation and impaired the growth inhibition of the roots induced by Pep1. Furthermore, we revealed that botrytis-induced kinase 1 (BIK1) physically interacted with PEPRs and RBOHD/F, respectively, and served downstream of the Pep1-PEPRs signaling pathway to regulate Pep1-induced ROS production and root growth inhibition. In conclusion, this study demonstrates a previously unrecognized signaling crosstalk between Pep1 and ROS signaling to regulate root immune response and root growth.

A novel Cu–6.5Ni–1Al–1Si–0.15Mg–0.15Ce alloy with super-high strength was designed and its corrosion behavior in 3.5% NaCl solution at 25 °C was investigated by the means of SEM observation, TEM observation and XPS analysis. The alloy after solution treatment, 80% cold rolling and aging at 450 °C for 1 h had the best comprehensive properties with hardness of HV 314, electrical conductivity of 19.4% IACS, tensile strength of 1017 MPa, and average annual corrosion rate of 0.028 mm/a. The oxides and chloride products formed at first, followed by the formation of dyroxides products. The alloy showed super-high strength, good electrical conductivity and corrosion resistant because Ni 2 Si hindered the precipitation of large NiAl at the grain boundary and the denickelefication of the alloy.

57 INTRODUCTION 58 MATERL\LS AND METHODS 60 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 63 ACKNOWLEDGMENT 65 REFERENCES 66

The row first-minus-last right (RFMLR) circulant matrix and row last-minus-first left (RLMFL) circulant matrices are two special pattern matrices. By using the inverse factorization of polynomial, we give the exact formulae of determinants of the two pattern matrices involving Perrin, Padovan, Tribonacci, and the generalized Lucas sequences in terms of finite many terms of these sequences.

Oils from soybean lines, developed to contain different amounts of palmitate (16:0) and linolenate (18:3), were evaluated for oxidative stability. Oils were extracted in the laboratory from the soybean seeds and refined, bleached, and deodorized. Two replications, separated at the point of conditioning, were evaluated for each genotype, including Hardin 91 (normal beans), P9322 (10.6% 16:0 and

We first give the style spectral decomposition of a special skew circulant matrixCand then get the style decomposition of arbitrary skew circulant matrix by making use of the Kronecker products between the elements of first row in skew circulant and the special skew circulantC. Besides that, we obtain the singular value of skew circulant matrix as well. Finally, we deal with the optimal backward perturbation analysis for the linear system with skew circulant coefficient matrix on the base of its style spectral decomposition.

Let A is a row first-plus-last right circulant matrix and C is a row first-plus-last left circulant matrix which first row is (P 1,P 2,…,P n ), and P n is the Pell number. To investigate the explicit determinants of those matrices, we adopted some special transformation between polynomial and multiplication and explicit representation of Binet formula in this paper. Putting the transformation into use when computing the determinant of matrix, the explicit determinants of matrices A and C are given only by the Pell and Pell-Lucas numbers. The result is very useful in the information theory such as generalized cyclic codes, graph disposing and so on.

Introduction The mission of the Germplasm Enhancement of Maize (GEM) Project is to effectively increase the diversity of U.S. maize germplasm utilized by producers, global end-users, and consumers. The mission will be achieved through a collaborative effort between USDA-ARS and both public and private research scientists by utilizing exotic, public, and proprietary maize germplasm. The resulting germplasm and associated knowledge, derived via the identification and incorporation of favorable alleles for prioritized traits from exotic sources, is utilized in private and public breeding programs and ultimately contributes to increased genetic diversity of maize grown by producers and improved product performance. In addition, the GEM project provides opportunities for training plant scientists in the enhancement and utilization of un-adapted germplasm. This contributes to the global sustainability of agricultural production, economic stability, and the nutrition and well-being of society.