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Background: First generation bioethanol production utilizes the starch fraction of maize, which accounts for approximately 60% of the ash-free dry weight of the grain. Scale-up of this technology for fuels applications has resulted in a massive supply of distillers' grains with solubles (DGS) coproduct, which is rich in cellulosic polysaccharides and protein. It was surmised that DGS would be rapidly adopted for animal feed applications, however, this has not been observed based on inconsistency of the product stream and other logistics-related risks, especially toxigenic contaminants. Therefore, efficient valorization of DGS for production of petroleum displacing products will significantly improve the techno-economic feasibility and net energy return of the established starch bioethanol process. In this study, we demonstrate 'one-pot' bioconversion of the protein and carbohydrate fractions of a DGS hydrolysate into C4 and C5 fusel alcohols through development of a microbial consortium incorporating two engineered Escherichia coli biocatalyst strains. Results: The carbohydrate conversion strain E. coli BLF2 was constructed from the wild type E. coli strain B and showed improved capability to produce fusel alcohols from hexose and pentose sugars. Up to 12 g/L fusel alcohols was produced from glucose or xylose synthetic medium by E. coli BLF2. The second strain, E. coli AY3, was dedicated for utilization of proteins in the hydrolysates to produce mixed C4 and C5 alcohols. To maximize conversion yield by the co-culture, the inoculation ratio between the two strains was optimized. The co-culture with an inoculation ratio of 1:1.5 of E. coli BLF2 and AY3 achieved the highest total fusel alcohol titer of up to 10.3 g/L from DGS hydrolysates. The engineered E. coli co-culture system was shown to be similarly applicable for biofuel production from other biomass sources, including algae hydrolysates. Furthermore, the co-culture population dynamics revealed by quantitative PCR analysis indicated that despite the growth rate difference between the two strains, co-culturing didn't compromise the growth of each strain. The q-PCR analysis also demonstrated that fermentation with an appropriate initial inoculation ratio of the two strains was important to achieve a balanced co-culture population which resulted in higher total fuel titer. Conclusions: The efficient conversion of DGS hydrolysates into fusel alcohols will significantly improve the feasibility of the first generation bioethanol process. The integrated carbohydrate and protein conversion platform developed here is applicable for the bioconversion of a variety of biomass feedstocks rich in sugars and proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is global health concern that the mass movement of pilgrims to and from Mecca annually could contribute to the international spread of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV). In China, about 11,000 Muslim pilgrims participate in the Hajj gathering in Mecca annually. This is the first report of MERS-CoV and respiratory virus molecular screening of returning pilgrims at points of entry in China from 2013 to 2015.Methods and Results: A total of 847 returning Hajj pilgrims participated in this study. The test results indicated that of the travelers, 34 tested positive for influenza A virus, 14 for influenza B virus, 4 for metapneumo virus, 2 for respiratory syncytial virus, and 3 for human coronavirus. There was a significant difference in the rates of positive and negative influenza virus tests between Hajj pilgrims with symptoms and those without. The detection rates of influenza virus were not significantly different among the three years studied, at 5.3, 6.0 and 6.3% for 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The MERS-CoV and respiratory viruses detection results at points of entry in China from 2013 to 2015 indicated that there were no MERS-CoV infection but a 5.7% positive influenza viruses in returning Chinese pilgrims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Almonds can decrease glycemic index of co-consumed foods and are a rich source for oleic acid and a-tocopherol. The aim of the randomized, crossover, controlled feeding trial was to examine whether as compared to NCEP step II diet as control (CON), ~60 g/d almonds (ALM) added to CON would improve glucoregulation and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in 33 Chinese T2DM patients. Methods: Forty T2DM patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive CON or ALM for 12 wks after a 2-wk. run-in period. Blood and urine samples were collected in the beginning and at the end of each dietary intervention phase for the assessment of biomarkers of glucoregulation, lipid profile, inflammation, and oxidative stress. Results: While ALM had a better overall nutritional quality than CON, neither ALM nor CON improved the glycemic status as the primary study outcome and other CVD risk factors, except the circulating nitric oxide being decreased by ALM compared to CON. Among 27 of 33 patients with the baseline HbA1c ≤.8, ALM decreased post-interventional fasting serum glucose and HbA1c by 5.9% and 3.0% as compared to that of CON, respectively (P = 0.01 and 0.04). Mean total and LDL-cholesterol concentrations were not changed by both diets. Conclusions: These results suggest almonds incorporated into healthful diets can improve glycemic status in diabetic patients with a better glycemic control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have shown that our understanding of species diversity within Diaporthe (syn. Phomopsis) is limited. In this study, 49 strains obtained from different countries were subjected to DNA sequence analysis. Based on these results, eight new species names are introduced for lineages represented by multiple strains and distinct morphology. Twelve Phomopsis species previously described from China were subjected to DNA sequence analysis, and confirmed to belong to Diaporthe. The genus Diaporthe is shown to be paraphyletic based on multi-locus (LSU, ITS and TEF1) phylogenetic analysis. Several morphologically distinct genera, namely Mazzantia, Ophiodiaporthe, Pustulomyces, Phaeocytostroma, and Stenocarpella, are embedded within Diaporthe s. lat., indicating divergent morphological evolution. However, splitting Diaporthe into many smaller genera to achieve monophyly is still premature, and further collections and phylogenetic datasets need to be obtained to address this situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The inability of patients to accurately and completely recount their clinical status between clinic visits reduces the clinician's ability to properly manage their patients. One way to improve this situation is to collect objective patient information while the patients are at home and display the collected multi-day clinical information in parallel on a single screen, highlighting threshold violations for each channel, and allowing the viewer to drill down to any analog signal on the same screen, while maintaining the overall physiological context of the patient. All this would be accomplished in a way that was easy for the clinician to view and use.Methods: Patients used five mobile devices to collect six heart failure-related clinical variables: body weight, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, pulse rate, blood oxygen saturation, physical activity, and subjective input. Fourteen clinicians practicing in a heart failure clinic rated the display using the System Usability Scale that, for acceptability, had an expected mean of 68 (SD, 12.5). In addition, we calculated the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient of the clinician responses using a two-way, mixed effects model, ICC (3,1).Results: We developed a single-screen temporal hierarchical display (VISION) that summarizes the patient's home monitoring activities between clinic visits. The overall System Usability Scale score was 92 (95% CI, 87-97), p < 0.0001; the ICC was 0.89 (CI, 0.79-0.97), p < 0.0001.Conclusion: Clinicians consistently found VISION to be highly usable. To our knowledge, this is the first single-screen, parallel variable, temporal hierarchical display of both continuous and discrete information acquired by patients at home between clinic visits that presents clinically significant information at the point of care in a manner that is usable by clinicians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To determine the prognostic relevance of neuroendocrine differentiation in poorly differentiated colorectal cancer. Methods: The clinicopathological features and survival of 70 patients with poorly differentiated colorectal cancer were analyzed retrospectively. Chromogranin A and synaptophysin were used as neuroendocrine markers. Patients were followed-up for more than 3 years or until death. Results: Of these 70 patients, 36 showed neuroendocrine differentiation. In univariate prognostic analysis, the patients with lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001), advanced TNM stage (P < 0.001), and neuroendocrine differentiation (P = 0.003) tended to have a poor prognosis. However, only lymph node metastasis was associated with a poor prognosis in multivariate analysis (P < 0.001). Patients with neuroendocrine differentiation were associated with lymph node metastasis (P = 0.006). Conclusions: Neuroendocrine differentiation in poorly differentiated colorectal cancer was not a direct prognostic factor in these patients. Lymph node metastasis was a direct prognostic factor in these patients. Patients with neuroendocrine differentiation were associated with lymph node metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: MicroRNA-381 (miR-381) has been reported to play suppressive or promoting roles in different malignancies. However, the expression level, biological function, and underlying mechanisms of miR-381 in gastric cancer remain poorly understood. Our previous study indicated that transmembrane protein 16A (TMEM16A) contributed to migration and invasion of gastric cancer and predicted poor prognosis. In this study, we found that miR-381 inhibited the metastasis of gastric cancer through targeting TMEM16A expression. Methods: MiR-381 expression was analyzed using bioinformatic software on open microarray datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and confirmed by quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) in human gastric cancer tissues and cell lines. Cell proliferation was investigated using MTT and cell count assays, and cell migration and invasion abilities were evaluated by transwell assay. Xenograft nude mouse models were used to observe tumor growth and pulmonary metastasis. Luciferase reporter assay, western blot, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunohistochemistry were employed to explore the mechanisms of the effect of miR-381 on gastric cancer cells. Results: MiR-381 was significantly down-regulated in gastric cancer tissues and cell lines. Low expression of miR-381 was negatively related to lymph node metastasis, advanced tumor stage and poor prognosis. MiR-381 decreased gastric cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion in vitro and in vivo. TMEM16A was identified as a direct target of miR-381 and the expression of miR-381 was inversely correlated with TMEM16A expression in gastric cancer tissues. Combination analysis of miR-381 and TMEM16A revealed the improved prognostic accuracy for gastric cancer patients. Moreover, miR-381 inhibited TGF-β signaling pathway and down-regulated epithelial--mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype partially by mediating TMEM16A. Conclusions: MiR-381 may function as a tumor suppressor by directly targeting TMEM16A and regulating TGF-β pathway and EMT process in the development of progression of gastric cancer. MiR-381/TMEM16A may be a novel therapeutic candidate target in gastric cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dupuytren's disease (DD) is a complex fibro-proliferative disorder of the hand that is often progressive and eventually can cause contractures of the affected fingers. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β1) has been implicated as a key stimulator of myofibroblast activity and fascial contraction in DD. Pirfenidone (PFD) is an active small molecule shown to inhibit TGF-TGF-β1-mediated action in other fibrotic disorders. This study investigates the efficacy of PFD in vitro in inhibiting TGF-TGF-β1-mediated cellular functions leading to Dupuytren's fibrosis. Methods: Fibroblasts harvested from (DD) and carpal tunnel (CT)- tissues were treated with or without TGF-TGF-β1 and/or PFD and were subjected to cell migration, cell proliferation and cell contraction assays. ELISA; western blots and real time RT-PCR assays were performed to determine the levels of fibronectin; p-Smad2/Smad3; alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), α2 chain of type I collagen and α1 chain of type III collagen respectively. Results: Our results show that PFD effectively inhibits TGF-TGF-β1-induced cell migration, proliferation and cell contractile properties of both CT- and DD-derived fibroblasts. TGF-TGF-β1−induced α-SMA mRNA and protein levels were inhibited at the higher concentration of PFD (800 μg/ml). Interestingly, TGF-TGF-β1 induction of type I and type III collagens and fibronectin was inhibited by PFD in both CT- and DD- derived fibroblasts, but the effect was more prominent in DD cells. PFD down-regulated TGF-TGF-β1-induced phosphorylation of Smad2/Smad3, a key factor in the TGF-TGF-β1 signaling pathway. Conclusion: Taken together these results suggest the PFD can potentially prevent TGF-TGF-β1−induced fibroblast to myofibroblast transformation and inhibit ECM production mainly Type I- and Type III- collagen and fibronectin in DD-derived fibroblasts. Further in-vivo studies with PFD may lead to a novel therapeutic application in preventing the progression or recurrence of Dupuytren's disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We previously showed that zonula occludens toxin (Zot) encoded by Campylobacter concisus zot808T gene has the potential to initiate inflammatory bowel disease. This Zot protein caused prolonged intestinal epithelial barrier damage, induced intestinal epithelial and macrophage production of tumor necrosis factor-a and enhanced the responses of macrophages to other microbes. In order to understand the potential virulence of Zot proteins in other Campylobacter species, in this study we examined their presence, similarities, motifs and prophages. Methods: The presence of Zot proteins in Campylobacter species was examined by searching for the Zot family domain in multiple protein databases. Walker A and Walker B motifs in Zot proteins were identified using protein sequence alignment. A phylogenetic tree based on Campylobacter zot genes was constructed using maximum-likelihood method. Campylobacter Zot proteins were compared using protein sequence alignment. The zot-containing prophages in Campylobacter species were identified and compared with known prophage proteins and other viral proteins using protein sequence alignment and protein BLAST. Results: Twelve Zot proteins were found in nine Campylobacter species/subspecies. Among these Campylobacter species, three species had two Zot proteins and the remaining six species/subspecies had one Zot protein. Walker A and Walker B motifs and a transmembrane domain were found in all identified Campylobacter Zot proteins. The twelve Campylobacter zot genes from the nine Campylobacter species/subspecies formed two clusters. The ZotCampyType_1 proteins encoded by Cluster 1 Campylobacter zot genes showed high similarities to each other. However, ZotCampyType_2 proteins encoded by Cluster 2 Campylobacter zot genes were more diverse. Furthermore, the zotcontaining Campylobacter prophages were identified. Conclusion: This study reports the identification of two types of Campylobacter Zot proteins. The high similarities of ZotCampyType_1 proteins suggest that they are likely to have similar virulence. ZotCampyType_2 proteins are less similar to each other and their virulent properties, if any, remain to be examined individually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Thymosin α1 (Tα1) as immunomodulatory treatment is supposed to be beneficial for the sepsis patients by regulating T cell subsets and inflammatory mediators. However, limited by the small sample size and the poor study design, the persuasive power of the single clinical studies is weak. This meta-analysis aimed to investigate the impact of Tα1 on the sepsis patients.Methods: We searched for the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CBM, VIP, CNKI, WANFANG, Igaku Chuo Zasshi (ICHUSHI) and Korean literature databases reporting the effects of Tα1 on outcomes in sepsis patients.Results: Among 444 related articles, 19 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) met our inclusion criteria. Mortality events were reported in 10 RCTs included 530 patients, and the meta-analysis showed significant decrease in Tα1 group compared with control group (RR 0.59, 95 % CI 0.45 to 0.77, p = 0.0001). The subgroup analysis showed no difference between the two dosages (RR 0.59, 95 % CI 0.43 to 0.81; RR 0.59, 95 % CI 0.35 to 0.98, respectively). In 9 RCTs, with a total of 489 patients, Tα1 administered once per day decrease APACHE II score significantly (SMD -0.80, 95 % CI -1.14 to -0.47, p < 0.0001) while Tα1 twice per day showed no effect (SMD 0.30, 95 % CI-0.10 to 0.70, p = 0.14). However, the length of ICU stay, the incidence of multiple organ failure (MOF) and duration of mechanical ventilation were not significantly affected by Tα1 treatment (SMD -0.52, 95 % CI -1.06 to 0.11, p = 0.06; SMD -0.49, 95 % CI -1.09 to 0.11, p = 0.11; SMD -0.37, 95 % CI -0.90 to 0.17, p = 0.17, respectively). As to the immunological indicators, the level of HLA-DR were increased by Tα1 (SMD 1.23, 95 % CI 0.28 to 2.18, p = 0.01) according to the pooled analysis of 8 studies involving 721 patients. Lymphocyte subsets CD3, CD4 and cytokines IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-α were also beneficially affected by Tα1 treatment.Conclusions: Tα1 may be beneficial to sepsis patients in reducing mortality and modulating inflammation reactions. However, the quality of evidence supporting the effectiveness is low considering the small sample sizes and inadequate adherence to standardized reporting guidelines for RCTs among the included studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Mount Huang eastern honey bees (Apis cerana) are an endemic population, which is well adapted to the local agricultural and ecological environment. In this study, the genetic structure of seven eastern honey bees (A. cerana) populations from Mount Huang in China were analyzed by SSR (simple sequence repeat) markers. Results: The results revealed that 16 pairs of primers used amplified a total of 143 alleles. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 6 to 13, with a mean value of 8.94 alleles per locus. Observed and expected heterozygosities showed mean values of 0.446 and 0.831 respectively. UPGMA cluster analysis grouped seven eastern honey bees in three groups. Conclusion: The results obtained show a high genetic diversity in the honey bee populations studied in Mount Huang, and high differentiation among all the populations, suggesting that scarce exchange of honey bee species happened in Mount Huang. Our study demonstrated that the Mount Huang honey bee populations still have a natural genome worth being protected for conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Campylobacter concisus is a Gram-negative bacterium that is associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Some C. concisus strains carry zonula occludens toxin (zot) gene which has polymorphisms. This study investigated the effects of C. concisus Zot on intestinal epithelial cells and macrophages using cell line models. Methods: Campylobacter concisus zot808T gene, a polymorphism that is associated with active IBD, was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. The effects of C. concisus Zot on intestinal epithelial barrier were examined using Caco-2 cell model. Apoptosis induced by C. concisus Zot in Caco-2 cells was assessed by measuring the levels of caspase 3/7. The production of pro-inflammatory cytokines induced by C. concisus Zot in HT-29 cells and in THP-1 macrophage-like cells was measured using ELISA kits. Whether exposure to C. concisus Zot can affect the responses of macrophages to E. coli K12 was also investigated. Results: Campylobacter concisus Zot caused prolonged intestinal epithelial barrier damage, induced intestinal epithelial cell apoptosis, induced epithelial production of TNF-a and IL-8 and upregulated TNF-a in THP-1 macrophage-like cells. Pre-exposure to C. concisus Zot significantly enhanced the production of TNF-α and IL-8 as well as phagocytosis by THP-1 macrophage-like cells in response to E. coli K12. Conclusion: This study suggests that C. concisus Zot may have enteric pathogenic potential by damaging intestinal epithelial barrier, inducing intestinal epithelial and macrophage production of proinflammatory cytokines in particular TNF-α and enhancing the responses of macrophages to other enteric bacterial species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chinese medicinal herbs may use more than one species of Curcumae Radix (Yujin) is the tuberous roots of Curcumae wenyujin, C kwangsiensis, C phaeocaulis and C longa. This study aimed to characterize the chemical profiles of these different species of Curcumae Radix, and develop a method for rapid discrimination of these species by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/Q-TOFMS) combined with multivariate statistical analysis. Methods: The metabolomes of 33 different batches of Curcumae Radix derived from four Curcumae species were profiled by UHPLC/Q-TOFMS. The resulting sample codes, tR-m/z pairs and ion intensities were processed by unsupervised principal component analysis (PCA) and supervised orthogonal partial least squared discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) to characterize the chemical composition of Curcumae Radix across the four different species. Results: Obvious differences were observed in the chemical compositions of the Curcumae Radix samples derived from the four different species according to PCA and OPLS-DA. These results suggested that curcumin, curcumenone, curcumenol and zederone could be used as unique chemical markers for C longa, C wenyujin, C phaeocaulis and C. kwangsiensis, respectively. Conclusions: This study developed a UHPLC/Q-TOFMS method coupled with multivariate statistical analysis to discriminate between Curcumae Radix samples from four different Curcumae species, i.e., C longa, C wenyujin, C phaeocaulis and C kwangsiensis. Notably, this new approach resulted in the identification of curcumin (a), curcumenone (b), curcumenol (c) and zederone (d) as unique chemical markers for the identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Accurate delimitation of plant pathogenic fungi is critical for the establishment of quarantine regulations, screening for genetic resistance to plant pathogens, and the study of ecosystem function. Concatenation analysis of multi-locus DNA sequence data represents a powerful and commonly used approach to recognizing evolutionary independent lineages in fungi. It is however possible to mask the discordance between individual gene trees, thus the speciation events might be erroneously estimated if one simply recognizes well supported clades as distinct species without implementing a careful examination of species boundary. To investigate this phenomenon, we studied Colletotrichum siamense s. lat., which is a cosmopolitan pathogen causing serious diseases on many economically important plant hosts. Presently there are significant disagreements among mycologists as to what constitutes a species in C. siamense s. lat., with the number of accepted species ranging from one to seven. Results: In this study, multiple approaches were used to test the null hypothesis "C. siamense is a species complex", using a global strain collection. Results of molecular analyses based on the Genealogical Concordance Phylogenetic Species Recognition (GCPSR) and coalescent methods (e.g. Generalized Mixed Yule-coalescent and Poisson Tree Processes) do not support the recognition of any independent evolutionary lineages within C. siamense s. lat. as distinct species, thus rejecting the null hypothesis. This conclusion is reinforced by the recognition of genetic recombination, cross fertility, and the comparison of ecological and morphological characters. Our results indicate that reproductive isolation, geographic and host plant barriers to gene flow are absent in C. siamense s. lat. Conclusions: This discovery emphasized the importance of a polyphasic approach when describing novel species in morphologically conserved genera of plant pathogenic fungi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The lignocellulose biorefinery based on the sugar platform usually focuses on polysaccharide bioconversion, while lignin is only burned for energy recovery. Pyrolysis can provide a novel route for the efficient utilization of residual lignin obtained from the enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulose. The pyrolysis characteristics of residual lignin are usually significantly affected by the pretreatment process because of structural alteration of lignin during pretreatment. In recent years, biological pretreatment using white-rot fungi has attracted extensive attention, but there are only few reports on thermal conversion of lignin derived from enzymatic hydrolysis residue (EHRL) of the bio-pretreated lignocellulose. Therefore, the study investigated the pyrolysis characteristics and kinetics of EHRL obtained from bamboo pretreated with Echinodontium taxodii in order to evaluate the potential of thermal conversion processes of EHRL. Results: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectra showed that EHRL of bamboo treated with E. taxodii had the typical lignin structure, but aromatic skeletal carbon and side chain of lignin were partially altered by the fungus. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that EHRL pyrolysis at different heating rates could be divided into two depolymerization stages and covered a wide temperature range from 500 to 900 K. The thermal decomposition reaction can be well described by two third-order reactions. The kinetics study indicated that the EHRL of bamboo treated with white-rot fungus had lower apparent activation energies, lower peak temperatures of pyrolysis reaction, and higher char residue than the EHRL of raw bamboo. Pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) was applied to characterize the fast pyrolysis products of EHRL at 600 °C. The ratios of guaiacyl-type to syringyl-type derivatives yield (G/S) and guaiacyl-type to p-hydroxy-phenylpropane-type derivatives yield (G/H) for the treated sample were increased by 33.18 and 25.30 % in comparison with the raw bamboo, respectively. Conclusions: The structural alterations of lignin during pretreatment can decrease the thermal stability of EHRL from the bio-treated bamboo and concentrate the guaiacyl-type derivatives in the fast pyrolysis products. Thus, the pyrolysis can be a promising route for effective utilization of the enzymatic hydrolysis residue from bio-pretreated lignocellulose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular protozoan that affects most species of endothermic animals including humans with a great infection rate. The vertical transmission of T. gondii causes abortion, constituting a serious threat to humans and leading to great losses in livestock production. Distinct from population structure of T. gondii in North America and Europe, Chinese 1 (ToxoDB #9) is a dominant genotype prevalent in China. Among the isolates of Chinese 1, the Wh3 and Wh6 have different virulence and pathogenicity in mice. However, little has been known about their difference at the genomic level. Thus the next-generation sequencing (NGS) approach was used to discover the association of the phenotypical variations with the genome sequencing data and the expression and polymorphisms of the key effectors. Results: We successfully sequenced the genome of Chinese 1 strains of Wh3 and Wh6. The average sequencing depths were 63.91 and 63.61 for Wh3 and Wh6, respectively. The variations of both isolates were identified in comparison with reference genome of type I GT1 strain. There were 505,645 and 505,856 SNPs, 30,658 and 30,004 indels, 4661 and 2320 SVs, and 1942 and 3080 CNVs for Wh3 and Wh6, respectively. In target search variations of particular factors of T. gondii, the dense granule protein 3 (GRA3) and rhoptry neck protein 3 (RON3) were found to have 35 SNPs, 2 indels and 89 SNPs, 6 indels, respectively. GRA3 and RON3 were both found to have higher expression levels in less virulent Wh6 than in virulent Wh3. Both strains of type Chinese 1 share polymorphic GRA15II and ROPI/III with type I, II, and III strains. Conclusions: Sequencing of the two strains revealed that genome structure of Chinese 1 and type I strains has considerable genomic variations. Sequencing and qRT-PCR analyses of 26 effectors displayed a remarkable variation that may be associated with phenotype and pathogenic differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endometrial cancer (EC) is one of the most common gynecologic malignancies. Identification of potential EC biomarkers is essential to improve the prognosis and development of therapies against EC. Synaptotagmin-like protein 1 (SYTL1), as a small GTPase Rab27 effector, mainly plays a role in vesicle trafficking and cytotoxic granule exocytosis in lymphocytes. However the role of SYTL1 in EC remains uncertain. We performed a comprehensive assessment of the relationship between SYTL1 and patient diagnosis and prognosis by analysis of EC patients' data from TCGA. We employed the LinkedOmics and Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/Proteins (STRING) database to analyze the biological function of SYTL1 in EC. In addition, the correlation between SYTL1 expression and its DNA methylation was performed by using cBioportal, UALCAN, TCGA Wanderer and MethSurv databases. We further assessed the link between SYTL1 and tumor-infiltrating immune cells by using gene set variation analysis (GSVA). Results We found that SYTL1 was highly expressed in EC patients and cell lines. And increased expression of SYTL1 was associated with age, clinical stage, histological type, histological grade and good overall survival (OS).SYTL1 DNA methylation is negatively associated with SYTL1 expression and UCEC patients' OS. SYTL1 expression is closely correlated with immune infiltration. Furthermore, we carried out in vitro experiments to verify the results of bioinformatic analysis. Conclusion Our results demonstrated that the elevation of SYTL1 expression is associated with good OS and SYTL1 might be a potential diagnostic and prognostic marker in EC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Osteoporosis (OP) and osteoarthritis (OA) are prevalent skeletal disorders among postmenopausal women. Coexistence is common especially that of postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMO) and lumbar OA. An hypothesis has been raised that OP and OA might share the same pathogenic mechanism, and pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) were reported to have anti-osteoporosis and anti-osteoarthritis properties, but this suggestion was based primarily on biomarker data. Therefore, whether these two effects could take place simultaneously has not yet been investigated. This randomized controlled trial (RCT) is designed to explore the effect of PEMFs for PMO and concomitant lumbar OA.Methods/design: The study will include PMO patients (postmenopausal women; aged between 50 and 70 years; have been postmenopausal for at least 5 years and diagnosed with OP using proximal femur T-score) with concomitant lumbar OA (patients with confounding disorders like diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and previous fracture history, etcetera, will be excluded) will be randomly assigned to two arms: PEMFs group and sham PEMFs group. There will be 25 participants in each arm (50 in total) and the outcome assessment, including the primary endpoint (proximal femur bone mineral density), will be performed at 5 weeks, 3 months and 6 months after enrollment.Discussion: PMO and lumbar OA are prominent public health problem, especially for postmenopausal women. We hope this RCT will provide scientific evidence to primary care of the postmenopausal women regarding the use of these nonpharmaceutical, noninvasive modalities, PEMFs, in managing PMO and lumbar OA.Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR-TRC-14005156 (28 August 2014). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cytogenetic map can provide not only information of the genome structure, but also can build a solid foundation for genetic research. With the developments of molecular and cytogenetic studies in cotton (Gossypium), the construction of cytogenetic map is becoming more and more imperative. Results: A cytogenetic map of chromosome 1 (A101) of Gossypium herbaceum (A1) which includes 10 bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clones was constructed by using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). Meanwhile, comparison and analysis were made for the cytogenetic map of chromosome 1 (A101) of G. herbaceum with four genetic linkage maps of chromosome 1 (Ah01) of G. hirsutum ((AD)1) and one genetic linkage map of chromosome 1 of (A101) G. arboreum (A2). The 10 BAC clones were also used to be localized on G. raimondii (D5) chromosome 1 (D501), and 2 of them showed clear unique hybridized signals. Furthermore, these 2 BAC clones were also shown localized on chromosome 1 of both A sub-genome and D sub-genome of G. hirsutum. Conclusion: The comparison of the cytogenetic map with genetic linkage maps showed that most of the identified marker-tagged BAC clones appearing same orders in different maps except three markers showing different positions, which might indicate chromosomal segmental rearrangements. The positions of the 2 BAC clones which were localized on Ah01 and Dh01 chromosomes were almost the same as that on A101 and D501 chromosomes. The corresponding anchored SSR markers of these 2 BAC clones were firstly found to be localized on chromosome D501 (Dh01) as they were not seen mapped like this in any genetic map reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Our previous works demonstrated that systemic orbital fat-derived stem cell (OFSC) transplantation was effective in ameliorating lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced extensive acute lung injury (ALI) in vivo mainly through paracrine regulation of macrophage-mediated cytokine-storm. In this study, we explore the molecular mechanism(s) of OFSCs regulating macrophage activity in a cytokine-inducible fashion. Methods: LPS (100 ng/ml)-activated macrophages were treated by conditioned medium from OFSCs (OFSCs-CM) or non-contact cultured with OFSCs for 6 hours. The potency of OFSCs on macrophage proliferation and pro-inflammation ability were determined. Expression levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines in macrophages, inducible immuno-modulatory factors in OFSCs, were investigated. Deep sequencing analysis as well as interaction between microRNA (miRNA) and genes of immuno-modulators in OFSCs induced by activated macrophages was predicted by miRTar. Transfection of miRNA inhibitor into OFSCs was performed. Real-time RT-PCR and transplantation of OFSCs into mice with LPS-induced ALI confirmed the in vitro and in vivo mechanism. Results: The paracrine effect of OFSCs on inhibition of macrophage pro-inflammatory cytokine release was more potent than induction of macrophage G0/G1 cell cycle arrest. OFSCs-CM suppressed LPS-induced inducible nitric oxide synthetase and the pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-1 alpha, and IL-1 beta expression in macrophages. Under non-contact culture, LPS-activated macrophages effectively triggered the expression of soluble immuno-modulating factors in OFSCs, i.e., IL-10, IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1 RA), indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase, and soluble TNF receptor type II (sTNF RII). Under miRTar prediction, miR-671-5p was identified as a critical microRNA in regulation of multiple immune-modulating factors in OFSCs response to macrophages. The baseline level of miR-671-5p was high in OFSCs, and down-regulation of miR-671-5p upon co-culture with activated macrophages was observed. MiR-671-5p inhibitor transfection into OFSCs selectively enhanced the IL-1 RA and sTNF RII expressions. In addition, inhibition of miR-671-5p in OFSCs enhanced the anti-inflammatory ability against LPS-induced ALI. Conclusion: The paracrine effect of OFSCs inhibits the pro-inflammatory ability and proliferation of macrophages. The immune-modulation capacity of OFSCs can be triggered by activated macrophages, and down-regulation of miR-671-5p enhances OFSC immuno-modulation ability by up-regulating IL-1 RA and sTNF RII expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sarcoma of the gallbladder is a rare entity. This report presents an extremely rare clinical case of a neurofibrosarcoma of the gallbladder. On examination, a mass was felt in the right hypochondrium. An ultrasound of the abdomen showed a mass in the gallbladder. Computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen showed a grossly distended gallbladder with soft tissue mass in the gallbladder. The mass was diagnosed as carcinoma of the gallbladder and an extended cholecystectomy was performed. Histopathological examination revealed spindle-cell proliferation and the possibility of a malignant tumor of mesenchymal origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is the major complication of diabetes; proteinuria is the hall mark of DN. Currently, the treatment for proteinuria is mainly limited to angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs). According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) theory, Chinese medicinals 'securing essence and tonifying the kidney' may be appropriate for proteinuria. The most promising Chinese medicinals and formulae are introduced in the present study to form a potent formula for DN proteinuria. To make oral administration convenient, the formula will be processed in the form of granules. Methods/design: A randomized, multi-center pilot trial will be conducted. Forty eight participants with DN will be randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups: 1. A granule group, at 10 grams, three times daily (G10 group, n = 12); 2. A granule group, at 20 grams, three times daily (G20 group, n = 12); 3. A decoction group (D group, n = 12); and 4. An irbesartan group (Aprovel group, n = 12). The following outcome measures will be used: the percentage change of the albumin-to-creatinine ratio; and the changes in serum creatinine, glomerular filtration rate, fasting plasma glucose and hemoglobulin from baseline to the end of the trial. Discussion: It is notable that most published clinical trials which assessed the efficacy of TCM on DN were of poor methodology and, therefore, their results have been invalidated. It is necessary to carry out well-designed clinical trials to provide sound evidence. The present trial is a study with potentially great value, for it will provide the parameters for future randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trials with large sample sizes, Trial registration: The trial is registered on the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR-TRC-12002718 (http://www.chictr.org/cn/proj/show.aspx?proj=3820). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mobility disability is a major adverse health outcome associated with aging and an impediment to older adults' well-being and behaviors in social and leisure activities. It has been shown that lifestyle factors, including smoking and alcohol consumption, have been used as coping strategies to deal with the negative impact of disability. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of smoking and alcohol consumption among older Canadians with different levels of mobility disabilities and to examine factors associated with these two lifestyle patterns among those with disabilities. Methods: Secondary data analysis was performed using individuals (n = 6,038) aged 65 years and older from both the 2001 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey and the 2003 Canadian Community Health Survey. Multivariate logistic regressions examined the relationship between disability severity and smoking as well as alcohol consumption while controlling for potential confounding socioeconomic factors. Results: The proportion of current smokers among seniors with less-severe and more-severe mobility disabilities and those in the general population was comparable with 12.55%, 11.57% and 11.93%, respectively. Forty-eight percent of seniors in the general population consumed alcohol regularly, compared to only 12.85% with moresevere mobility disabilities. No significant association was shown between the severity level of mobility disabilities and smoking (odds ratio = 0.90, 95% confidence interval: 0.75, 1.08). However, seniors having more-severe disability were less likely to consume alcohol regularly (odds ratio = 0.76, 95% confidence interval: 0.65, 0.89). Other variables including age, gender, income, living status, and social participation also impacted these lifestyle patterns among the study population. Conclusions: Smoking and alcohol patterns present different associations with the severity level of mobility disabilities. Compared with the general population, elderly Canadians with mobility disabilities had similar smoking prevalence but differ significantly in terms of alcohol consumption. Results from this research will be relevant to decision makers involved in program planning, health education, and policy development as it pertains to the prevention and management of age-related disability [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Extensive drug resistance of Acinetobacter baumannii is a serious problem in the clinical setting. It is therefore important to find active antibiotic combinations that could be effective in the treatment of infections caused by this problematic 'superbug'. In this study, we analyzed the in vitro activities of three colistin-based combinations and a minocycline-based combination against clinically isolated extensive drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (XDR-AB) strains. Methods: Fourteen XDR-AB clinical isolates were collected. The clonotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction-based fingerprinting. Susceptibility testing was carried out according to the standards of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. Activities of drug combinations were investigated against four selected strains and analyzed by mean survival time over 12 hours (MST12 h) in a time-kill study. Results: The time-kill studies indicated that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of colistin (0.5 or 0.25 μg/ mL) completely killed all strains at 2 to 4 hours, but 0.5xMIC colistin showed no bactericidal activity. Meropenem (8 μg/mL), minocycline (1 μg/mL) or rifampicin (0.06 μg/mL) did not show bactericidal activity. However, combinations of colistin at 0.5xMIC (0.25 or 0.125 μg/mL) with each of the above were synergistic and shown bactericidal activities against all test isolates. A combination of meropenem (16 μg/mL) with minocycline (0.5xMIC, 4 or 2 μg/mL) was synergitic to all test isolates, but neither showed bactericidal activity alone. The MST12 h values of drug combinations (either colistin- or minocycline-based combinations) were significantly shorter than those of the single drugs (p < 0.01). Conclusions: This study indicates that combinations of colistin/meropenem, colistin/rifampicin, colistin/minocycline and minocycline/meropenem are synergistic in vitro against XDR-AB strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2, the inducible isoform of prostaglandin (PG) synthase, has been implicated in tumor metastasis. Interaction of COX-2 with its specific EP receptors on the surface of cancer cells has been reported to induce cancer invasion. However, the effects of COX-2 on migration activity in human chondrosarcoma cells are mostly unknown. In this study, we examined whether COX-2 and EP interaction are involved in metastasis of human chondrosarcoma. Results: We found that over-expression of COX-2 or exogenous PGE2 increased the migration of human chondrosarcoma cells. We also found that human chondrosarcoma tissues and chondrosarcoma cell lines had significant expression of the COX-2 which was higher than that in normal cartilage. By using pharmacological inhibitors or activators or genetic inhibition by the EP receptors, we discovered that the EP1 receptor but not other PGE receptors is involved in PGE2-mediated cell migration and α2β1 integrin expression. Furthermore, we found that human chondrosarcoma tissues expressed a higher level of EP1 receptor than normal cartilage. PGE2-mediated migration and integrin up-regulation were attenuated by phospholipase C (PLC), protein kinase C (PKC) and c-Src inhibitor. Activation of the PLCβ, PKCα, c-Src and NF-κB signaling pathway after PGE2 treatment was demonstrated, and PGE2-induced expression of integrin and migration activity were inhibited by the specific inhibitor, siRNA and mutants of PLC, PKC, c-Src and NF-κB cascades. Conclusions: Our results indicated that PGE2 enhances the migration of chondrosarcoma cells by increasing α2β1 integrin expression through the EP1/PLC/PKCα/c-Src/NF-κB signal transduction pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Quantitative knowledge on the anatomy of the medial collateral ligament (MCL) is important for treatment of MCL injury and for MCL release during total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The objective of this study was to quantitatively determine the morphology of the MCL of human knees. Methods: 10 cadaveric human knees were dissected to investigate the MCL anatomy. The specimens were fixed in full extension and this position was maintained during the dissection and morphometric measurements. The outlines of the insertion sites of the superficial MCL (sMCL) and deep MCL (dMCL) were digitized using a 3D digitizing system. Results: The insertion areas of the superficial MCL (sMCL) were 348.6 ± 42.8 mm² and 79.7 ± 17.6 mm² on the tibia and femur, respectively. The insertion areas of the deep MCL (dMCL) were 63.6 ± 13.4 mm² and 71.9 ± 14.8 mm² on the tibia and femur, respectively. The distances from the centroids of the tibial and femoral insertions of the sMCL to the tibial and femoral joint line were 62.4 ± 5.5 mm and 31.1 ± 4.6 mm, respectively. The distances from the centroids of dMCL in the tibial insertion and the femoral insertion to the tibial and femoral joint line were 6.5 ± 1.3 mm and 20.5 ± 4.2 mm, respectively. The distal portion of the dMCL (meniscotibial ligament - MTL) was approximately 1.7 times wider than the proximal portion of the dMCL (meniscofemoral ligament - MFL), whereas the MFL was approximately 3 times longer than the MTL. Conclusions: The morphologic data on the MCL may provide useful information for improving treatments of MCL-related pathology and performing MCL release during TKA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gliomas represent the most common primary malignant brain tumors, yet little is known about the molecular pathogenesis of these tumors. The highly-regulated Wnt signal transduction pathway is essential for normal developmental processes, and defects in the pathway are closely linked to oncogenesis. Dickkopf-1 (DKK-1) is a secreted protein that acts as a potent inhibitor of the Wnt pathway. The aim of this study was to examine the expression profile of DKK-1 gene in human glioma and its association with tumor malignancy. Methods: We determined the expression levels of DKK-1 transcript and protein in 12 glioblastoma cell lines, medulloblastoma cells, low-grade glioma cells, and human astrocyte cells by semiquantitative RT-PCR and ELISA. A total of 47 tumor biopsy specimens and 11 normal brain tissue samples from patients with cerebral trauma internal decompression were embedded in paraffin blocks and used for immunostaining. Twenty-six primary tumors and 7 corresponding brain samples were stored in liquid nitrogen and used for RT-PCR. We further examined serologic concentrations and cerebral fluid levels of DKK-1 in patients with tumors. Results: DKK-1 could only be detected in 12 human glioblastoma cell lines, not in a panel of other tumor and normal cell lines. The difference between glioma patients and healthy individuals was significant. Kendall's tau-c association analysis also revealed the increased DKK-1 protein expression in tumor tissues of higher pathologic classification. The levels of cerebral fluid DKK-1 protein were significantly higher in glioma patients than in healthy donors or in neuronal benign tumor patients, suggesting that the DKK-1 molecule in cerebral fluids can be applicable to detect the presence of glioma and be developed as a novel prognostic treatment. Conclusion: The Wnt antagonist DKK-1 gene may have important roles in glioma tumorigenesis and act as a novel biomarker in human malignant glioblastoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The conventional treatment protocol in high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) therapy utilizes a dense-scan strategy to produce closely packed thermal lesions aiming at eradicating as much tumor mass as possible. However, this strategy is not most effective in terms of inducing a systemic anti-tumor immunity so that it cannot provide efficient micro-metastatic control and long-term tumor resistance. We have previously provided evidence that HIFU may enhance systemic anti-tumor immunity by in situ activation of dendritic cells (DCs) inside HIFU-treated tumor tissue. The present study was conducted to test the feasibility of a sparse-scan strategy to boost HIFU-induced anti-tumor immune response by more effectively promoting DC maturation. Methods: An experimental HIFU system was set up to perform tumor ablation experiments in subcutaneous implanted MC-38 and B16 tumor with dense- or sparse-scan strategy to produce closely-packed or separated thermal lesions. DCs infiltration into HIFU-treated tumor tissues was detected by immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry. DCs maturation was evaluated by IL-12/IL-10 production and CD80/CD86 expression after co-culture with tumor cells treated with different HIFU. HIFU-induced anti-tumor immune response was evaluated by detecting growth-retarding effects on distant re-challenged tumor and tumor-specific IFN-γ-secreting cells in HIFU-treated mice. Results: HIFU exposure raised temperature up to 80 degrees centigrade at beam focus within 4 s in experimental tumors and led to formation of a well-defined thermal lesion. The infiltrated DCs were recruited to the periphery of lesion, where the peak temperature was only 55 degrees centigrade during HIFU exposure. Tumor cells heated to 55 degrees centigrade in 4-s HIFU exposure were more effective to stimulate co-cultured DCs to mature. Sparsescan HIFU, which can reserve 55 degrees-heated tumor cells surrounding the separated lesions, elicited an enhanced anti-tumor immune response than dense-scan HIFU, while their suppressive effects on the treated primary tumor were maintained at the same level. Flow cytometry analysis showed that sparse-scan HIFU was more effective than dense-scan HIFU in enhancing DC infiltration into tumor tissues and promoting their maturation in situ. Conclusion: Optimizing scan strategy is a feasible way to boost HIFU-induced anti-tumor immunity by more effectively promoting DC maturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Oligoarrays have become an accessible technique for exploring the transcriptome, but it is presently unclear how absolute transcript data from this technique compare to the data achieved with tag-based quantitative techniques, such as massively parallel signature sequencing (MPSS) and serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE). By use of the TransCount method we calculated absolute transcript concentrations from spotted oligoarray intensities, enabling direct comparisons with tag counts obtained with MPSS and SAGE. The tag counts were converted to number of transcripts per cell by assuming that the sum of all transcripts in a single cell was 5·105. Our aim was to investigate whether the less resource demanding and more widespread oligoarray technique could provide data that were correlated to and had the same absolute scale as those obtained with MPSS and SAGE. Results: A number of 1,777 unique transcripts were detected in common for the three technologies and served as the basis for our analyses. The correlations involving the oligoarray data were not weaker than, but, similar to the correlation between the MPSS and SAGE data, both when the entire concentration range was considered and at high concentrations. The data sets were more strongly correlated at high transcript concentrations than at low concentrations. On an absolute scale, the number of transcripts per cell and gene was generally higher based on oligoarrays than on MPSS and SAGE, and ranged from 1.6 to 9,705 for the 1,777 overlapping genes. The MPSS data were on same scale as the SAGE data, ranging from 0.5 to 3,180 (MPSS) and 9 to 1,268 (SAGE) transcripts per cell and gene. The sum of all transcripts per cell for these genes was 3.8·105 (oligoarrays), 1.1·105 (MPSS) and 7.6·104 (SAGE), whereas the corresponding sum for all detected transcripts was 1.1·106 (oligoarrays), 2.8·105 (MPSS) and 3.8·105 (SAGE). Conclusion: The oligoarrays and TransCount provide quantitative transcript concentrations that are correlated to MPSS and SAGE data, but, the absolute scale of the measurements differs across the technologies. The discrepancy questions whether the sum of all transcripts within a single cell might be higher than the number of 5·105 suggested in the literature and used to convert tag counts to transcripts per cell. If so, this may explain the apparent higher transcript detection efficiency of the oligoarrays, and has to be clarified before absolute transcript concentrations can be interchanged across the technologies. The ability to obtain transcript concentrations from oligoarrays opens up the possibility of efficient generation of universal transcript databases with low resource demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: For years, Uniform Resource Locator (URL) decay or "link rot" has been a growing concern in the field of biomedical sciences. This paper addresses this issue by examining the status of the URLs published in MEDLINE abstracts, establishing current availability and estimating URL decay in these records from 1994 to 2006. We also reviewed the information provided by the URL to determine if the context that the author cited in writing the paper is the same information presently available in the URL. Lastly, with all the documented recommended methods to preserve URL links, we determined which among them have gained acceptance among authors and publishers. Methods: MEDLINE records from 1994 to 2006 from the National Library of Medicine in Extensible Mark-up Language (XML) format were processed yielding 10,208 URL addresses. These were accessed once daily at random times for 30 days. Titles and abstracts were also searched for the presence of archival tools such as WebCite, Persistent URL (PURL) and Digital Object Identifier (DOI). Results: Results showed that the average URL length ranged from 13 to 425 characters with a mean length of 35 characters [Standard Deviation (SD) = 13.51; 95% confidence interval (CI) 13.25 to 13.77]. The most common top-level domains were ".org" and ".edu", each with 34%. About 81% of the URL pool was available 90% to 100% of the time, but only 78% of these contained the actual information mentioned in the MEDLINE record. "Dead" URLs constituted 16% of the total. Finally, a survey of archival tool usage showed that since its introduction in 1998, only 519 of all abstracts reviewed had incorporated DOI addresses in their MEDLINE abstracts. Conclusion: URL persistence parallels previous studies which showed approximately 81% general availability during the 1-month study period. As peer-reviewed literature remains to be the main source of information in biomedicine, we need to ensure the accuracy and preservation of these links. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: High-throughput systems for gene expression profiling have been developed and have matured rapidly through the past decade. Broadly, these can be divided into two categories: hybridization-based and sequencing-based approaches. With data from different technologies being accumulated, concerns and challenges are raised about the level of agreement across technologies. As part of an ongoing large-scale cross-platform data comparison framework, we report here a comparison based on identical samples between one-dye DNA microarray platforms and MPSS (Massively Parallel Signature Sequencing). Results: The DNA microarray platforms generally provided highly correlated data, while moderate correlations between microarrays and MPSS were obtained. Disagreements between the two types of technologies can be attributed to limitations inherent to both technologies. The variation found between pooled biological replicates underlines the importance of exercising caution in identification of differential expression, especially for the purposes of biomarker discovery. Conclusion: Based on different principles, hybridization-based and sequencing-based technologies should be considered complementary to each other, rather than competitive alternatives for measuring gene expression, and currently, both are important tools for transcriptome profiling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The HongXin radish (Raphanus sativus L.), which contains the natural red pigment (red radish pigment), is grown in the Fuling district of Chongqing City. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying anthocyanin synthesis for the formation of natural red pigment in the fleshy roots of HongXin radish are not well studied. Results: De novo transcriptome of HX-1 radish, as well as that of the advanced inbred lines HX-2 and HX-3 were characterized using next generation sequencing (NGS) technology. In total, approximately 66.22 million paired-end reads comprising 34, 927 unigenes (N50 = 1, 621 bp) were obtained. Based on sequence similarity search with known proteins, total of 30, 127 (about 86.26%) unigenes were identified. Additionally, functional annotation and classification of these unigenes indicated that most of the unigenes were predominantly enriched in the metabolic process-related terms, especially for the biosynthetic pathways of secondary metabolites. Moreover, majority of the anthocyanin biosynthesis-related genes (ABRGs) involved in the regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis were identified by targeted search for their annotation. Subsequently, the expression of 15 putative ABRGs involved in the anthocyanin synthesis-related pathways were validated using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Of those, RsPAL2, RsCHS-B2, RsDFR1, RsDFR2, RsFLS, RsMT3 and RsUFGT73B2-like were identified significantly associated with anthocyanin biosynthesis. Especially for RsDFR1, RsDFR2 and RsFLS, of those, RsDFR1 and RsDFR2 were highest enriched in the HX-3 and WG-3, but RsFLS were down-regulated in HX-3 and WG-3. We proposed that the transcripts of RsDFR1, RsDFR2 and RsFLS might be act as key regulators in anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway. Conclusions: The assembled radish transcript sequences were analysed to identify the key ABRGs involved in the regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis. Additionally, the expression patterns of candidate ABRGs involved in the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway were validated by qRT-PCR. We proposed that the transcripts of RsDFR1, RsDFR2 and RsFLS might be acted as key regulators in anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway. This study will enhance our understanding of the biosynthesis and metabolism of anthocyanin in radish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dissecting genome organization is indispensable for further functional and applied studies. As genome sequences data shown, cotton genomes contain more than 60% repetitive sequences, so study on repetitive sequences composition, structure, and distribution is the key step to dissect cotton genome. Results: In this study, a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clone enriched in repetitive sequences, was discovered initiatively by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). FISHing with allotetraploidy cotton as target DNA, dispersed signals on most regions of all A sub-genome chromosomes, and only middle regions of all D sub-genome chromosomes were detected. Further FISHing with other cotton species bearing A or D genome as target DNA, specific signals were viewed. After BAC sequencing and bioinformational analysis, 129 repeat elements, size about 57,172 bp were found, accounting for more than 62% of the BAC sequence (91,238 bp). Among them, a type of long terminal repeat-retrotransposon (LTR-RT), LTR/Gypsy was the key element causing the specific FISH results. Using the fragments of BAC matching with the identified Gypsy-like LTR as probes, the BAC-57I23-like FISH signals were reappeared. Running BLASTN, the fragments had good match with all chromosomes of G. arboreum (A2) genome and A sub-genome of G. hirsutum (AD1), and had relatively inferior match with all chromosomes of D sub-genome of AD1, but had little match with the chromosomes of G. raimondii (D5) genome, which was consistent with the FISH results. Conclusion: A repeats-enriched cytogenetic marker to identify A and D sub-genomes of Gossypium was discovered by FISH. Combined sequences analysis with FISH verification, the assembly quality of repetitive sequences in the allotetraploidy cotton draft genome was assessed, and better chromosome belonging was verified. We also found the genomic distribution of the identified Gypsy-LTR-RT was similar to the distribution of heterochromatin. The expansion of this type of Gypsy-LTR-RT in heterochromatic regions may be one of the major reasons for the size gap between A and D genome. The findings showed here will help to understand the composition, structure, and evolution of cotton genome, and contribute to the further perfection of the draft genomes of cotton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Socioeconomic status (SES) has been focused on as a key determinant of the incidence of cancer, cancer stage at diagnosis as well as treatment choices in western countries. However, to the authors' knowledge, little work has been done concerning the relationship of SES and esophageal cancer in China. Methods: Patients diagnosed with primary esophageal cancer from January to December 2007 in Qilu hospital were included. Socioeconomic status was determined by a questionnaire including religion, years of schooling and high education, place of residence, occupation, annual household income, and insurance. Results: A total of 238 cases were collected in this study. Linear-by-linear association testing revealed that healthcare delay was significantly associated with SES (P = 0.009). Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that increased health-care delay (>2 months) was more frequently observed in patients with lower SES (OR 2.271; 95% CI 1.069-4.853). Patients diagnosed at TNM I and II were more frequently in higher SES groups (P = 0.017). The association test was statistically significant for undergoing surgical resection only (P = 0.015) and chemotherapy (P = 0.015). Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that surgical resection only was less performed in higher SES group compared with lower SES group (OR 0.372; 95% CI 0.188-0.734). For chemotherapy, higher SES patients had a threefold higher likelihood compared with lower SES group (OR 3.042; 95% CI 1.335-6.928). Conclusion: Socioeconomic status was found to be associated with health-care delay, tumor stage and treatment modalities in esophageal cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sepsis and continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) are both responsible for the alterations of the pharmacokinetics of antibiotics. For patients with sepsis receiving CRRT, the serum concentrations of meropenem in the early phase (< 48 h) was significantly lower than that in the late phase (> 48 h). This current trial aimed to investigate whether administration of a loading dose of meropenem results in a more likely achievement of the pharmacokinetic (PK)/pharmacodynamics (PD) target (100% fT > 4 × MIC) and better therapeutic results in the patients with sepsis receiving CRRT.Methods: This is a single-blinded, single-center, randomized, controlled, two-arm, and parallel-group trial. This trial will be carried out in Guangzhou First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, South China University of Technology Guangdong, China. Adult patients (age ≥ 18 years) with critical sepsis or sepsis-related shock receiving CRRT will be included in the study. The subjects will be assigned to the control group and the intervention group (LD group) randomly at a 1:1 ratio, the estimated sample size should be 120 subjects in each group. In the LD group, the patient will receive a loading dose of 1.5-g meropenem resolved in 30-ml saline which is given via central line for 30 min. Afterward, 0.75-g meropenem will be given immediately for 30 min every 8 h. In the control group, the patient will receive 0.75-g meropenem for 30 min every 8 h. The primary objective is the probabilities of PK/PD target (100% fT > 4 × MIC) achieved in the septic patients who receive CRRT in the first 48 h. Secondary objectives include clinical cure rate, bacterial clearance rate, sepsis-related mortality and all-cause mortality, the total dose of meropenem, duration of meropenem treatment, duration of CRRT, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), C-reactive protein levels, procalcitonin levels, white blood cell count, and safety.Discussion: This trial will assess for the first time whether administration of a loading dose of meropenem results in a more likely achievement of the PK/PD target and better therapeutic results in the patients with sepsis receiving CRRT. Since CRRT is an important therapeutic strategy for sepsis patients with hemodynamic instability, the results from this trial may help to provide evidence-based therapy for septic patients receiving CRRT.Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trials Registry, ChiCTR2000032865 . Registered on 13 May 2020, http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=53616 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Principal malaria vectors in Africa, An. gambiae and An. coluzzii, share an inversion polymorphism on the left arm of chromosome 2 (2La/2L+a) that is distributed non-randomly in the environment. Genomic sequencing studies support the role of strong natural selection in maintaining steep clines in 2La inversion frequency along environmental gradients of aridity, and physiological studies have directly implicated 2La in heat and desiccation tolerance, but the precise genetic basis and the underlying behavioral and physiological mechanisms remain unknown. As the insect cuticle is the primary barrier to water loss, differences in cuticle thickness and/or epicuticular waterproofing associated with alternative 2La arrangements might help explain differences in desiccation resistance. Methods To test that hypothesis, two subcolonies of both An. gambiae and An. coluzzii were established that were fixed for alternative 2La arrangements (2La or 2L+a) on an otherwise homosequential and shared genetic background. Adult mosquitoes reared under controlled environmental conditions (benign or arid) for eight days post-eclosion were collected and analyzed. Measurements of cuticle thickness were made based on scanning electron microscopy, and cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) composition was evaluated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Results After removing the allometric effects of body weight, differences in mean cuticle thickness were found between alternative 2La karyotypes, but not between alternative environments. Moreover, the thicker cuticle of the An. coluzzii 2La karyotype was contrary to the known higher rate of water loss of this karyotype relative to 2L+a. On the other hand, quantitative differences in individual CHCs and overall CHC profiles between alternative karyotypes and environmental conditions were consistent with expectation based on previous physiological studies. Conclusions Our results suggest that alternative arrangements of the 2La inversion are associated with differences in cuticle thickness and CHC composition, but that only CHC composition appears to be relevant for desiccation resistance. Differences in the CHC composition were consistent with previous findings of a lower rate of water loss for the 2L+a karyotype at eight days post-eclosion, suggesting that CHC composition is an important strategy for maintaining water balance in this genetic background, but not for 2La. Despite a higher rate of water loss at eight days, higher body water content of the 2La karyotype confers a level of desiccation resistance equivalent to that of the 2L+a karyotype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accumulated evidence has suggested that potentiation of cortical GABAergic inhibitory neurotransmission may be a key mechanism in the treatment of schizophrenia. However, the downstream molecular mechanisms related to GABA potentiation remain unexplored. Recent studies have suggested that dopamine D2 receptor antagonists, which are used in the clinical treatment of schizophrenia, modulate protein kinase B (Akt)/glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3 signaling. Here we report that activation of GABAB receptors significantly inhibits Akt/GSK-3 signaling in a β-arrestin-dependent pathway. Agonist stimulation of GABAB receptors enhances the phosphorylation of Akt (Thr-308) and enhances the phosphorylation of GSK-3α (Ser-21)/β (Ser-9) in both HEK-293T cells expressing GABAB receptors and rat hippocampal slices. Furthermore, knocking down the expression of β-arrestin2 using siRNA abolishes the GABAB receptor-mediated modulation of GSK-3 signaling. Our data may help to identify potentially novel targets through which GABAB receptor agents may exert therapeutic effects in the treatment of schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To define the sites where the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (LFCN) is more easily visualized and to describe the anatomical variations of the LFCN. Methods: A total of 240 LFCNs in 120 volunteers were evaluated with 18 MHz ultrasound; the inter muscular space between the tensor fasciae latae muscle and the sartorius was used as an initial sonographic landmark. The time taken to identify the nerve was recorded. The number of nerve branches at the level of the inguinal ligament (IL) and the relationship between the LFCN and the IL was assessed. The nerve cross-sectional area (CSA) of the LFCN and the distance between the LFCN and the anterior superior iliac spine was measured. Results: Each nerve was identified using ultrasound in all participants. The mean time for identifying the nerve was7s for unilateral LFCNs. The nerve passed under the IL in 198 cases, whereas in 44 cases, it passed through to the IL. The LFCN consisted of 1-4 branches just after its passage under or through the IL. The CSA of the LFCN was1.04±0.44 mm2, and the mean distance between the LFCN and the anterior superior iliac spine was 15.6 ± 4.2 mm. Conclusions: It is easier to identify the LFCN if the inter muscular space between the tensor fasciae latae muscle and the sartorius is used as an initial sonographic landmark. The anatomical variation of the LFCN can be viewed with high-frequency ultrasound [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is an ecological disorder of the vaginal microbiota that affects millions of women annually, and is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes including pre-term birth and the acquisition of sexually transmitted infections. However, little is known about the overall structure and composition of vaginal microbial communities; most of the earlier studies focused on predominant vaginal bacteria in the process of BV. In the present study, the diversity and richness of vaginal microbiota in 50 BV positive and 50 healthy women from China were investigated using culture-independent PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and barcoded 454 pyrosequencing methods, and validated by quantitative PCR. Results: Our data demonstrated that there was a profound shift in the absolute and relative abundances of bacterial species present in the vagina when comparing populations associated with healthy and diseased conditions. In spite of significant interpersonal variations, the diversity of vaginal microbiota in the two groups could be clearly divided into two clusters. A total of 246,359 high quality pyrosequencing reads was obtained for evaluating bacterial diversity and 24,298 unique sequences represented all phylotypes. The most predominant phyla of bacteria identified in the vagina belonged to Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Fusobacteria. The higher number of phylotypes in BV positive women over healthy is consistent with the results of previous studies and a large number of low-abundance taxa which were missed in previous studies were revealed. Although no single bacterium could be identified as a specific marker for healthy over diseased conditions, three phyla - Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Fusobacteria, and eight genera including Gardnerella, Atopobium, Megasphaera, Eggerthella, Aerococcus, Leptotrichia/Sneathia, Prevotella and Papillibacter were strongly associated with BV (p < 0.05). These genera are potentially excellent markers and could be used as targets for clinical BV diagnosis by molecular approaches. Conclusions: The data presented here have clearly profiled the overall structure of vaginal communities and clearly demonstrated that BV is associated with a dramatic increase in the taxonomic richness and diversity of vaginal microbiota. The study also provides the most comprehensive picture of the vaginal community structure and the bacterial ecosystem, and significantly contributes to the current understanding of the etiology of BV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Thiamazole is a widely used antithyroid agent that has been approved for the treatment of hyperthyroidism. Although thiamazole-induced hepatotoxicity is a main side effect, it may progress to liver failure in a very few cases. Case Presentation: We described a 24-year-old patient with hyperthyroidism and trilogy of Fallot, who developed liver failure due to thiamazole. Liver biopsy showed intrahepatic cholestasis, mild inflammatory infiltrates, as well as significant fibrosis, indicating both acute and chronic liver injuries. Although a series of potent therapies were given, the patient deceased due to severe liver decompensation. Conclusions: This case suggests that thiamazole-induced hepatotoxicity in the setting of advanced fibrosis increases the risk of poor outcome. Regular liver function monitoring during thiamazole therapy is therefore important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous reports have mainly focused on the volatiles in citrus fruits, and there have been few reports about the volatiles in citrus leaves and flowers. However, citrus leaves and flowers are also rich in volatile compounds with unique aromas. Here, to investigate the volatiles in citrus leaves and flowers, volatile profiling was performed on leaves from 62 germplasms and flowers from 25 germplasms. Results: In total, 196 and 82 volatile compounds were identified from leaves of 62 citrus germplasms and flowers of 25 citrus germplasms, respectively. The dominant volatile terpenoids were more diverse in citrus leaves than in peels. A total of 34 volatile terpenoids were commonly detected in the leaves of at least 20 germplasms, among which 31 were overaccumulated in the leaves of wild or semiwild germplasms. This result was consistent with the high expression levels of five genes and one key gene of the mevalonate and 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol-4-phosphate (MEP) biosynthetic pathways, respectively, as well as the low expression levels of geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase of the MEP pathway, relative to the levels in cultivars. Fully open flowers showed increased levels of four terpene alcohols and a decrease in sabinene content compared with balloon-stage flowers, especially in sweet orange. A monoterpene synthase gene was identified and functionally characterized as a sabinene synthase in vitro. Conclusions: Collectively, our results suggest that 31 important terpenoids are abundant in wild or semiwild citrus germplasms, possibly because of a negative effect of domestication on the volatiles in citrus leaves. The sweet smell of fully open flowers may be attributed to increased levels of four terpene alcohols. In addition, a sabinene synthase gene was identified by combined transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurocognitive disorder characterized by hyperactivity, inattention, working memory deficits and impulsivity. Its worldwide prevalence is estimated to be 3-5% in children and adolescents. The mainstay treatment for ADHD is stimulant medications (e.g. methylphenidate), which increase synaptic dopamine by directly blocking dopamine transporter (DAT). Although these pharmacological agents are effective, they are often associated with various side effects including risks for future substance use disorders in ADHD patients. Here, we investigated an interaction between DAT and dopamine D2 receptor (D2R) as a novel target to develop potential therapeutics for the treatment of ADHD by using an interfering peptide (TAT-DATNT) to dissociate this protein complex. We found that TAT-DATNT promotes locomotor behavior in Sprague-Dawley rats. Furthermore, using in vivo microdialysis and high-performance liquid chromatography, we found that the disruption of D2R-DAT elevates extracellular dopamine level. More importantly, the interfering peptide, TAT-DATNT, attenuates hyperactivity and improves spontaneous alternation behavior in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) ------ a common animal model of ADHD. This work presents a different means (i.e. other than direct blockade by a DAT inhibitor) to regulate the activity of DAT and dopaminergic neurotransmission, and a potential target site for future development of ADHD treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an opportunistic protozoan apicomplexan and obligate intracellular parasite that infects a wide range of animals and humans. Rhoptry proteins 5 (ROP5), ROP16, ROP18 and dense granules 15 (GRA15) are the important effectors secreted by T. gondii which link to the strain virulence for mice and modulate the host's response to the parasite. Little has been known about these molecules as well as GRA3 in type Chinese 1 strains that show polymorphism among strains of archetypical genotypes. This study examined the genetic diversity of these effectors and its correlated virulence in mice among T. gondii isolates from China. Results: Twenty-one isolates from stray cats were detected, of which 15 belong to Chinese 1, and 6 to ToxoDB #205. Wh6 isolate, a Chinese 1 strain, has an avirulent phenotype. PCR-RFLP results of ROP5 and ROP18 presented few variations among the strains. Genotyping of GRA15 and ROP16 revealed that all the strains belong to type II allele except Xz7 which carries type I allele. ROP16 amino acid alignment at 503 locus demonstrated that 17 isolates are featured as type I or type III (ROP16I/III), and the other 4 as type II (ROP16II). The strains investigated may be divided into four groups based on GRA3 amino acid alignment, and all isolates of type Chinese 1 belong to the μ-1 allele except Wh6 which is identical to type II strain. Conclusions: PCR-RFLP and sequence alignment analyses of ROP5, ROP16, ROP18, GRA3, and GRA15 in T. gondii revealed that strains with the same genotype may have variations in some of their key genes. GRA3 variation exhibited by Wh6 strain may be associated with the difference in phenotype and pathogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the body can damage liver cells and cause disorders in blood lipid metabolism. Apolipoprotein C3 (ApoC3) plays an important role in the regulation of lipid metabolism, but no study on the HBV regulation of ApoC3 has been reported. This purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of HBV on ApoC3 expression and its regulatory mechanism. Methods: The expression levels of ApoC3 mRNA and protein in the human hepatoma cell lines HepG2 and HepG2. 2.15 were determined using real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and Western blot. The HepG2 cells were co-transfected with the ApoC3 gene promoter and either HBV-infected clone pHBV1.3 or its individual genes. The changes in luciferase activity were assayed. The expression levels of ApoC3 mRNA and protein were determined using RT-qPCR and Western blot. The content of ApoC3 in the supernatant of the cultured cells was determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The sera were collected from 149 patients with HBV infection and 102 healthy subjects at physical examination as the normal controls. The serological levels of ApoC3 in the HBV group and the normal control group were determined using ELISA. The contents of serum triglyceride (TG) and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) in the HBV patients and the normal control were determined using an automatic biochemical analyser. Results: The expression levels of ApoC3 mRNA and protein were lower in the HepG2.2.15 cells than in the HepG2 cells. pHBV1.3 and its X gene could inhibit the activity of the ApoC3 promoter and its mRNA and protein expression. The serum levels of ApoC3, VLDL and TG were 65.39 ± 7.48 μg/ml, 1.24 ± 0.49 mmol/L and 0.46 ± 0. 10 mmol/L in the HBV patients and 41.02 ± 6.88 μg/ml, 0.76 ± 0.21 mmol/L, 0.29 ± 0.05 mmol/L in the normal controls, respectively, statistical analysis revealed significantly lower serum levels of ApoC3, VLDL and TG in HBV patients than in the normal controls (P < 0.05). Conclusion: HBV can inhibit the in vivo and in vitro synthesis and secretion of ApoC3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are emerging as an extremely promising therapeutic agent for tissue repair. However, limitations exist such as the low numbers of MSCs obtained from donors, and the poor survival and function of donor cells. Omentin-1, a new fat depot-specific secretory adipokine, exerts proproliferation, prosurvival, and proangiogenic functions in certain cells via an Akt-dependent mechanism; however, little is known about the influence of omentin-1 on MSCs. Methods: MSCs were isolated from 60-80 g donor rats. Cell proliferation was assessed with CCK-8 and EdU assay. Cell cycle, apoptosis ratio, reactive oxygen species concentration, and mitochondrial membrane potential were detected by flow cytometry. Hoechst 33342 dye was used to assess morphological changes of apoptosis. Expression levels of Akt, FoxO3a, GSK-3β, and apoptosis- and cell cycle-associated proteins were detected by Western blotting. Tube formation assay was used to test the angiogenesis role of conditioned medium from MSCs in vitro. The cytokine secretion was assessed by ELISA. Results: After treatment with omentin-1 (100-800 ng/ml), MSCs displayed a higher proliferative capacity with an increasing number of cells in the S and G2 phase of the cell cycle. Moreover, omentin-1 preconditioning for 1 h could protect MSCs against H2O2-induced apoptosis in a concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, omentin-1 pretreatment reduced the excessive reactive oxygen species. Western blots revealed that increased Bcl-2 and decreased Bax appeared in MSCs after omentin-1 incubation, which inhibited the mitochondrial apoptosis pathways with evidence showing inhibition of caspase-3 cleavage and preservation of mitochondrial membrane potential. Omentin-1 could enhance angiogenic growth factor secretion and elevate the ability of MSCs to stimulate tube formation by human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Furthermore, omentin-1 enhanced Akt phosphorylation; however, blockade of the PI3K/Akt pathway with an inhibitor, LY294002 (20 μM), suppressed the above beneficial effects of omentin-1. Conclusion: Omentin-1 can exert beneficial effects on MSCs by promoting proliferation, inhibiting apoptosis, increasing secretion of angiogenic cytokines, and enhancing the ability for stimulating tube formation by HUVECs via the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Thus, omentin-1 may be considered a candidate for optimizing MSC-based cell therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Protein regulator of cytokinesis-1 (PRC1) belongs to the microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) family, and is involved in cytokinesis. Recent investigations suggest PRC1 involvement in human carcinogenesis, including breast carcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma and etc. However, whether PRC1 contributes to lung adenocarcinoma tumorigenesis remains unknown. Methods: Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), Western blotting and Immunohistochemical staining (IHC) were used to evaluate and contrast the PRC1 expression profile in lung adenocarcinoma and adjacent normal lung tissues. We examined the clinical use of PRC1 in lung adenocarcinoma prognosis. Additionally, the tumorigenesis impact of PRC1 in lung adenocarcinoma cells was verified via in vitro and in vivo metastasis and tumorigenesis assays. Notably, Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) was performed to investigate the molecular mechanism underlying the oncogenic role of PRC1 in lung adenocarcinoma. Results: PRC1 mRNA and protein expressions were upregulated in lung adenocarcinoma tissues compared to adjacent normal lung tissues. PRC1 protein overexpression correlated with lymph node metastasis and was an independent poor prognostic factor for lung adenocarcinoma patients. Our data implied that PRC1 depletion limited the proliferation and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma cells in vitro and lowered tumor development and lung metastasis in vivo. Remarkably, limiting PRC1 substantially prompted G2/M phase cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Mechanistically, by conducting NGS on PRC1-depleted A549 cells and control cells, we discovered that PRC1 expression was significantly correlated with the Wnt signaling pathway. Conclusions: This investigation offers confirmation that PRC1 is a prognostic and promising therapeutic biomarker for people with lung adenocarcinoma and takes on a key part in the activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway in lung adenocarcinoma development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chromosome microdissection is one of the most important techniques in molecular cytogenetic research. Cotton (Gossypium Linnaeus, 1753) is the main natural fiber crop in the world. The resistance gene analog (RGA) cloning after its single chromosome microdissection can greatly promote cotton genome research and breeding. Results: Using the linker adaptor PCR (LA-PCR) with the primers of rice disease-resistance homologues, three nucleotide sequences PS016 (KU051681), PS054 (KU051682), and PS157 (KU051680) were obtained from the chromosome Ah01 of upland cotton (cv. TM-1). The Blast results showed that the three sequences are the nucleotide binding site-leucine rich repeat (NBS-LRR) type RGAs. Clustering results indicated that they are homologous to these published RGAs. Thus, the three RGAs can definitely be confirmed as NBS-LRR class of RGAs in upland cotton. Conclusions: Using single chromosome microdissection technique, DNA libraries containing cotton RGAs were obtained. This technique can promote cotton gene cloning, marker development and even the improvement of cotton genome research and breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The incidence and mortality rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have steadily increased in recent years. A hypoxic microenvironment is one of the most important characteristics of solid tumors which has been shown to promote tumor metastasis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition and angiogenesis. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition and vasculogenic mimicry have been regarded as crucial contributing factors to cancer progression. HIF-1α functions as a master transcriptional regulator in the adaptive response to hypoxia. Lysyl oxidases like 2 (LOXL2) is a member of the lysyl oxidase family, which main function is to catalyze the covalent cross-linkages of collagen and elastin in the extracellular matrix. Recent work has demonstrated that HIF-1α promotes the expression of LOXL2, which is believed to amplify tumor aggressiveness. LOXL2 has shown to promote metastasis and is correlated with poor prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma. The purpose of our study is to explore the role of HIF-1α in progression and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma by promoting the expression of LOXL2 as well as the potential regulatory mechanism. Methods: HIF-1α, LOXL2 expression and CD31/periodic acid-Schiff double staining in HCC patient samples were examined by immunohistochemical staining. shRNA plasmids against HIF-1α was used to determine whether LOXL2 been increased by HIF-1α. We monitored a series of rescue assays to demonstrate our hypothesis that LOXL2 is required and sufficient for HIF-1α induced EMT and VM formation, which mediates cellular transformation and takes effect in cellular invasion. Then we performed GeneChip® Human Transcriptome Array (HTA) 2.0 in HepG2 cells, HepG2 cells overexpressed LOXL2 and HepG2 cells treated with CoCl2. Results: In clinical HCC tissues, it confirmed a positive relationship between HIF-1α and LOXL2 protein. Importantly, HIF-1α and LOXL2 high expression and the presence of vasculogenic mimicry were correlated to poor prognosis. HIF-1α was found to induce EMT, HCC cell migration, invasion and VM formation by regulating LOXL2. The results of microarray assays were analyzed. Conclusion: HIF-1α plays an important role in the development of HCC by promoting HCC metastasis, EMT and VM through up-regulating LOXL2. This study highlights the potential therapeutic value of targeting LOXL2 for suppression of HCC metastasis and progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection causes acute and chronic liver disease, ultimately leading to the development of liver cirrhosis (LC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Phospholipase A2 group IIA (PLA2G2A) plays important roles in the development and progression of many tumors. Thus far, there have been no reports on the association between HBV and PLA2G2A. The present study investigated the effect of HBV infection on PLA2G2A expression and its application in the diagnosis of HBV-related diseases. Methods: Serum levels of PLA2G2A in 308 HBV-infected patients and 185 healthy controls were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The difference in serum levels of PLA2G2A was analyzed among chronic hepatitis B (CHB), LC, and HCC patients. PLA2G2A mRNA and protein expression in HepG2 and HepG2.2.15 cells carrying the integrated HBV genome were measured using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western blot assays. The HBV infectious clone pHBV1.3, the control plasmid pBlue-ks and PLA2G2A gene promoter were transfected into HepG2 and HepG2.2.15 cells. After transfection, the luciferase activity was measured in the cells. PLA2G2A mRNA and protein expression levels were examined using RT-PCR and western blot assays. Results: The serum levels of PLA2G2A were 258.3 ± 20.3ng/dl in the healthy controls and 329.0 ± 22.5ng/dl, 385.4 ± 29.3ng/dl and 459.2 ± 38.6ng/dl in the CHB, LC, and HCC patients, respectively. Statistical analyses revealed significantly higher serum levels of PLA2G2A in CHB, LC, and HCC patients than in the healthy controls (P < 0.05), and PLA2G2A levels were elevated in the order of HCC > LC > CHB group. High serum PLA2G2A levels in HCC patients were associated with a lower prevalence of lymph node metastasis and a lower TNM stage. HepG2.2.15 cells carrying the HBV genome expressed higher levels of PLA2G2A mRNA and protein than the HepG2 cells. In addition, HBV triggered PLA2G2A promoter activity and enhanced PLA2G2A mRNA and protein expression compared to the empty vector pBlue-ks. Conclusion: HBV can upregulate the expression of PLA2G2A, and serum levels of PLA2G2A are associated with the progression of HBV-related diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The maize kernel row number (KRN) is a key component that contributes to grain yield and has high broad-sense heritability (H2). Quantitative trait locus/loci (QTL) mapping using a high-density genetic map is a powerful approach to detecting loci that are responsible for traits of interest. Bulked segregant ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequencing (BSR-seq) is another rapid and cost-effective strategy to identify QTL. Combining QTL mapping using a high-density genetic map and BSR-seq may dissect comprehensively the genetic architecture underlying the maize KRN. Results: A panel of 300 F2 individuals derived from inbred lines abe2 and B73 were genotyped using the specific-locus amplified fragment sequencing (SLAF-seq) method. A total of 4,579 high-quality polymorphic SLAF markers were obtained and used to construct a high-density geneticmap with a total length of 2,123 centimorgan (cM) and an average distance between adjacent markers of 0.46 cM. Combining the genetic map and KRN of F2 individuals, four QTL (qKRN1, qKRN2, qKRN5, and qKRN8-1) were identified on chromosomes 1, 2, 5, and 8, respectively. The physical intervals of these four QTL ranged from 4.36 Mb for qKRN8-1 to 7.11 Mb for qKRN1 with an average value of 6.08 Mb. Based on high-throughput sequencing of two RNA pools bulked from leaves of plants with extremely high and low KRNs, two QTL were detected on chromosome 8 in the 10-25 Mb (BSR_QTL1) and 60-150 Mb (BSR_QTL2) intervals. According to the physical positions of these QTL, qKRN8-1 was included by BSR_QTL2. In addition, qKRN8-1 was validated using QTL mapping with a recombinant inbred lines population that was derived from inbred lines abe2 and B73. Conclusions: In this study, we proved that combining QTL mapping using a high-density genetic map and BSR-seq is a powerful and cost-effective approach to comprehensively revealing genetic architecture underlying traits of interest. The QTL for the KRN detected in this study, especially qKRN8-1, can be used for performing fine mapping experiments and marker-assisted selection in maize breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]