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Cultivating high-level composite applied professional postgraduates with master's degree is not only an inevitable need for building first-class universities and disciplines, but also a significant way to actively serve the implementation of rural revitalization strategies. As a backbone of the development of "agriculture, countryside and farmers", it is particularly important to explore the collaborative training mechanism for professional postgraduates in the context of "rural revitalization" in the new era. Based on the new requirements of higher education reform and the guidance spirit of the national agricultural professional postgraduates of education guidance committee for the master's degree related agriculture, this article explores the collaborative training mechanism of food related master's degree. On the basis of analyzing the differences and promotion channels of connotation construction in the current professional master's education, it is proposed to take "rural revitalization" as an opportunity currently, which is an important manifestation of the "sublimation" of food professional master's education. Meanwhile, combined with the approach of collaborative innovation training, a leapfrog "one-three-three" collaborative training system is proposed, and a collaborative training mechanism of "practice driven, multi-dimensional integration, and innovation leading" is further constructed with the "four modernizations" to serve as the main line. This collaborative training mechanism fully integrates educational resources in the new era which plays a vital role in leveraging the human resource value of food postgraduates, assisting rural revitalization, and achieving multidimensional development of education and society.

Food Immunology is an important professional course of food quality and safety specialty, which is an important link between food discipline, immunology and biotechnology, in order to provide theoretical support and technical guidance for solving food safety. This course is characterized by more contents, abstraction, systematization. However, it is difficult for teachers to impart knowledge by pictures, text, and language in traditional teaching. Generally, it is difficult for students to understand and remember relevant information about the course, which leads to hate learning. Based on the characteristics and the actual problems in teaching of Food Immunology, the course teaching reform is based on the perspective of interaction between OBE concept and curriculum ideology and politics, taking ''foster virtue through education'' as the fundamental task, to explore and practice teaching reform from the different aspects. Optimizing teaching content, the combination of theory with practice, improving teaching models, strengthen the construction of the teaching team and the combined with various assessment methods, to improve students' interest in learning, enhance teaching effectiveness and student learning outcomes.

Abstract As the new SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants and subvariants emerge, there is an urgency to develop intranasal, broadly protective vaccines. Here, we developed highly efficacious, intranasal trivalent SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates (TVC) based on three components of the MMR vaccine: measles virus (MeV), mumps virus (MuV) Jeryl Lynn (JL1) strain, and MuV JL2 strain. Specifically, MeV, MuV-JL1, and MuV-JL2 vaccine strains, each expressing prefusion spike (preS-6P) from a different variant of concern (VoC), were combined to generate TVCs. Intranasal immunization of IFNAR1−/− mice and female hamsters with TVCs generated high levels of S-specific serum IgG antibodies, broad neutralizing antibodies, and mucosal IgA antibodies as well as tissue-resident memory T cells in the lungs. The immunized female hamsters were protected from challenge with SARS-CoV-2 original WA1, B.1.617.2, and B.1.1.529 strains. The preexisting MeV and MuV immunity does not significantly interfere with the efficacy of TVC. Thus, the trivalent platform is a promising next-generation SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate.

Foodborne pathogens are one of the important factors affecting food safety. Efficient and rapid detection technology of foodborne pathogens is particularly important to ensure food safety. Among the rapid detection methods of foodborne pathogens, molecular biology technology has been widely used because of its advantages of strong specificity, high accuracy, and fast detection speed. This paper introduces the application of various molecular biological techniques in the rapid detection of foodborne pathogens, including polymerase chain reaction (PCR), loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), nuclear acid sequence-based amplification (NAS-BA), recombinase polymerase amplification (PRA), recombinase-aided isothermal amplification (RAA), and gene chip (GC). The application status, application scope and existing problems of these technologies are also analyzed and summarized to provide theoretical reference for the rapid detection of foodborne pathogens in the future.

Abstract Zikui (Camellia sinensis cv. Zikui) is a recently discovered cultivar of local purple tea in Guizhou, China. It is a purple leaf bud mutation material of Meitan Taicha (Camellia sinensis cv. ‘Meitan-taicha’) ‘N61’ strain, which is an important local germplasm resource in Guizhou. It is also a model plant for the study of anthocyanins, but the limited germplasm resources and the limitation of traditional reproduction hinder its application. Here, an efficient regeneration system is established by using hypocotyl as explants for the first time. Different plant growth regulators (PGRs) are evaluated during different regeneration processes including callus and root induction. According to our findings, using the optimal disinfection conditions, the seed embryo contamination rate is 17.58%. Additionally, the mortality rate is 9.69%, while the survival rate is measured as 72.73%. Moreover, the highest germination rate of 93.64% is observed under MS + 2.40 mg/L GA3 medium conditions. The optimal callus induction rate is 95.19%, while the optimal adventitious bud differentiation rate is 20.74%, Medium with 1.6 mg/L IBA achieved 68.6% rooting of the adventitious shoots. The survival rate is more than 65% after 6 days growth in the cultivated matrix. In summary, our research aims to establish a regeneration system for Zikui tea plants and design a transformation system for tea plant tissue seedlings. This will enable transfer of the target gene and ultimately facilitate the cultivation of new tea varieties with unique characteristics.

The weak gel strength of Dosidicus gigas surimi restricts its applications in surimi products. However, the addition of hydrocolloids effectively improve this drawback. Psyllium husk powder (PHP) contains high levels of dietary fiber and forms a good quality hydrocolloid when dissolved in water. In this study, different concentrations of PHP were mixed with D. gigas surimi, and the cooking properties, gel properties, cold storage changes, water distribution and microstructure of the composite gel imitation noodles were studied. The addition of PHP deepened the color of the samples, and made the surimi obtain ductility and stretchability similar to grain noodles. When the level of PHP was approximately 10%, the water absorption reached saturation, and the water solubility and water-holding capability began to reduce. The gel strength and tensile modulus showed increasing trends, and the relative tensile rate reached the maximum value of 3.08 when 10% PHP was added. After refrigeration, the sample became softer and less viscous. Microstructure observations revealed that as more PHP was added, the surface became smoother and tighter and the gel network was more uniform. Overall, the composite gel imitation noodles formed by the addition of 10% PHP had the best quality.

Euryodendron excelsum H. T. Chang, a rare and endangered evergreen tree that is endemic to China. The micropropagation system of this species has been established, but some challenges associated with in vitro rooting remained to be improved. In this study, the in vitro rooting of E. excelsum plantlets were optimized by dark exposure, and the network of gene expression and endogenous hormones levels during dark-induced adventitious root (AR) formation were revealed. AR formation of E. excelsum plantlets were significantly promoted by dark exposure, especially by dark exposure for 15 d. In the stems of E. excelsum plantlets under the treatment of dark exposure for 15 d, lower level of abscisic acid (ABA), gibberellic acid 1 (GA1), isopentenyladenine (IP), isopentenyladenosine (IPA) and zeatin (ZT), as well as higher level of GA7, jasmonic acid (JA) and salicylic acid (SA), promoted the whole course of AR formation. The higher level of trans-zeatin riboside (TZR) and T-zeatin (TZT) promoted the elongation of dark-induced AR, while higher level of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) stimulated the process of AR primordia formation. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) involved in hormone biosynthesis, plant hormone signal transduction and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis participated in the regulation of dark-induced AR development. The weighted gene co-expression network (WGCNA) analysis identified five modules that had highly correlation with phytohormone contents, and numerous hub genes associated with carotenoid biosynthesis, tryptophan metabolism, zeatin biosynthesis, alpha-Linolenic acid metabolism, phenylalanine metabolism, plant hormone signal transduction and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis were revealed. Those result will provide technical reference for in vitro rooting of woody species, and promote biological conservation and genetic engineering of rare and endangered species.

Soil salinity, a major environmental stress, restricts agricultural production worldwide. Gynura divaricata (L.) DC. is widely cultivated on tropical islands in China and has both edible and medicinal value. NaCl stress and growth indicators, antioxidant enzyme activity, as well as MDA, proline, and soluble sugar content, were determined. Based on the transcriptomic data of tissue-cultured G. divaricata plantlets grown in control (0 mM NaCl) and salt stress (50 and 200 mM NaCl) conditions, gene expression patterns were examined. KEGG enrichment analysis of differentially expressed genes indicated significant enrichment of plant hormone signaling, MAPK signaling, and starch and sucrose metabolism pathways. These findings allowed key biological pathways and salt stress-responsive genes to be identified, thus providing a molecular basis for breeding salt-tolerant G. divaricata varieties. This transcriptomic analysis revealed a complex tolerance mechanism of G. divaricata in response to NaCl, laying a foundation for screening and cloning key genes related to NaCl tolerance and studying their interactions. These findings would allow the molecular basis of NaCl tolerance to be explored, with the aim of breeding NaCl-tolerant varieties.

Purposes The Hutuo Group belongs to the Early Proterozoic strata. As one of the most typical Paleoproterozoic strata in North China, the timing redefinition of the Hutuo Group is of great significance to the establishment of the early Precambrian stratigraphic chronology framework, the discussion of the early Precambrian geological evolution process in North China and the study of plate assembly. Methods This article conducts a detailed study of the Dongye Subgroup strata of the Hutuo Group, collecting 24 detrital zircon samples from the Jian'ancun Formation of the Hutuo Group. From 23 similar age detrital zircons, we define the weighted average age of the bottom boundary of the Hutuo Group is 2 469 Ma, and regional tectonic movements occurred in the Wutai area around 1 855 Ma. According to the 1 109 zircon ages in Hutuo Group from previous studies, we considered that the ages of >2.5 Ga are from underlying Gaofan subgroup and the maximum depositional age of Hutuo Group was early Paleoproterozoic. Findings The results show that the crust of the Wutai area was unstable at 2 376, 2 170, 2 066, 1 988, and 1 825 Ma, resulting in multiple magmatic events. The 1 825 Ma zircon age can further indicate the occurrence of the Lyuliang movement, and provide a basis for the early Proterozoic North China Craton integration.

In order to develop new packaging materials to extend the shelf life of tuna, LA/ZN antibacterial nanofiber film was prepared by coaxial electrospinning technology with zein (ZN) and leaf aldehyde (LA) as raw materials. The morphology and structure of LA/ZN nanofiber film were analyzed by scanning electron microscope, infrared spectrum and differential scanning calorimetry, and the antibacterial mechanism of the fiber film was explored. The preservation effect of LA/ZN nanofiber film on tuna was investigated. The results indicated that the LA/ZN nanofiber membrane had a linear morphology, smooth surface, and uniformly distributed fiber diameters ranging from 475~575 nm. The encapsulation of LA in corn was a physical process, and there was no chemical interaction between the components in the electrospinning process. After adding LA, the initial melting temperature of the membrane decreased slightly. LA had broad-spectrum antibacterial properties, which could cause damage to bacterial cell walls and membranes, as well as leakage of macromolecular substances such as proteins and DNA, leading to bacterial death. In addition, the results of the 4 ℃ tuna preservation experiment showed that LA/ZN nanofiber film could effectively reduce the total number of fish colonies, volatile base nitrogen content, and histamine content, delay the deterioration of fish texture, and extend the shelf life of tuna fillets by three days. The excellent preservation performance of LA/ZN nanofiber film was expected to be applied in the preservation of aquatic products.

Edible film is now a trend in the food packaging industry. In this study, edible films were prepared by adding two Bacillus spp. (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens Y11 and Bacillus velezensis Y12) to a cassava starch and carboxymethyl cellulose sodium matrix. The structural, physicochemical, and biological characteristics of the film were analyzed, and its application in salmon preservation was explored. The film had a dense structure and no pores, indicating that its polymeric components were compatible with each other. The addition of Bacillus spp. increased the antioxidant activity of the film and its ability to eliminate hydroxyl radicals (84.57% and 91.86%, respectively). The film also showed good antibacterial activity against several pathogens and underwent complete degradation in natural soil within 12 days. The film significantly reduced the total coliform count of salmon and extended its shelf life by 3 days, demonstrating its value as a food-packaging material.

This study aimed to extract sturgeon oil (SO) from the sturgeon head and apply it to sturgeon meat to produce surimi gel. The effects of SO and its Pickering emulsion on the qualities of surimi gel were investigated. The results demonstrated that Pickering emulsions improved the quality deterioration of the gel caused by the direct addition of SO, especially the soy isolate protein (SPI) emulsion and the pea isolate protein (PPI) emulsion. Pickering emulsions contributed to a more uniform and compact network structure of the gel, improved the texture properties, enhanced the freeze-thaw stability, and reduced lipid oxidation. Additionally, compared to the addition of exogenous lipids such as peanut oil and linseed oil, SO and its Pickering emulsion better maintained the characteristic flavor of sturgeon surimi gel. This study provides valuable data and feasible ideas for expanding the utilization of sturgeon by-products and developing new types of surimi gel products.

The present study investigated the impact of plasma-activated water (PAW), slightly acidic electrolytic water (SAEW) and plasma-activated slightly acidic electrolytic water (PASW) treatment on myofibrillar protein (MP) in salmon fillets. Additionally, the interaction mechanism between myosin and reactive oxygen species was explored by molecular docking. Compared with the control group (719.26 nm), PASW treatment group exhibited the smallest particle size (408.97 nm). The PASW treatment exhibited efficacy in reducing MP aggregation and inhibiting protein oxidation. In comparison with other treatments, PASW treatment demonstrated a greater ability to mitigate damage to the secondary and tertiary structures of MP. O3 and H2O2 interact with myosin through hydrogen bonding. Specifically, O3 interacts with Lys676, Gly677, and Met678 of myosin while H2O2 binds to Thr681, Asp626, Arg680, and Met678. This study offers novel insights into the impact of PASW on MP, and provides a theoretical foundation for its application in aquatic product processing.

ABSTRACTThe rapid evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants presents a constant challenge to the global vaccination effort. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive investigation into two newly emerged variants, BA.2.87.1 and JN.1, focusing on their neutralization resistance, infectivity, antigenicity, cell-cell fusion, and spike processing. Neutralizing antibody (nAb) titers were assessed in diverse cohorts, including individuals who received a bivalent mRNA vaccine booster, patients infected during the BA.2.86/JN.1-wave, and hamsters vaccinated with XBB.1.5-monovalent vaccine. We found that BA.2.87.1 shows much less nAb escape from WT-BA.4/5 bivalent mRNA vaccination and JN.1-wave breakthrough infection sera compared to JN.1 and XBB.1.5. Interestingly, BA.2.87.1 is more resistant to neutralization by XBB.1.5-monovalent-vaccinated hamster sera than BA.2.86/JN.1 and XBB.1.5, but efficiently neutralized by a class III monoclonal antibody S309, which largely fails to neutralize BA.2.86/JN.1. Importantly, BA.2.87.1 exhibits higher levels of infectivity, cell-cell fusion activity, and furin cleavage efficiency than BA.2.86/JN.1. Antigenically, we found that BA.2.87.1 is closer to the ancestral BA.2 compared to other recently emerged Omicron subvariants including BA.2.86/JN.1 and XBB.1.5. Altogether, these results highlight immune escape properties as well as biology of new variants and underscore the importance of continuous surveillance and informed decision-making in the development of effective vaccines.IMPORTANCEThis study investigates the recently emerged SARS-CoV-2 variants, BA.2.87.1 and JN.1, in comparison to earlier variants and the parental D614G. Varied infectivity and cell-cell fusion activity among these variants suggest potential disparities in their ability to infect target cells and possibly pathogenesis. BA.2.87.1 exhibits lower nAb escape from bivalent mRNA vaccinee and BA.2.86/JN.1-infected sera than JN.1 but is relatively resistance to XBB.1.5-vaccinated hamster sera, revealing distinct properties in immune reason and underscoring the significance of continuing surveillance of variants and reformulation of vaccines. Antigenic differences between BA.2.87.1 and other earlier variants yield critical information not only for antibody evasion but also for viral evolution. In conclusion, this study furnishes timely insights into the spike biology and immune escape of the emerging variants BA.2.87.1 and JN.1, thus guiding effective vaccine development and informing public health interventions.

The effects of different edible fungi on the flavor profiles of fish soups were analyzed by sensory evaluation, non-volatile and volatile flavor compounds. The sensory attributes of fish soups were modified by adding edible fungi, with the highest total scores obtained for AAFS and DFS. Compared with pure fish soup, the amounts of free amino acids, nucleotides, organic acids and inorganic ions were increased with fungi addition, especially AAFS. The different mushroom fish soups could be clearly distinguished by E-nose analysis, and a total of 52 flavor compounds, mainly composed of aldehydes (27), ketones (11), alcohols (8), esters (4), and others (2), were then identified by GC-IMS. Eventually, fish soup samples were classified into three groups based on OPLS-DA analysis: Ⅰ (LEFS), Ⅱ (BFS and BEFS) and Ⅲ (ABFS, AAFS and DFS). The results showed that Agrocybe aegerita had high suitability for improving the flavor of Large yellow croaker soups.

Summary: Tissue-resident memory T cells (TRM) are a specialized T cell population residing in peripheral tissues. The presence and potential impact of TRM in the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) remain to be elucidated. Here, we systematically investigated the relationship between TRM and melanoma TIME based on multiple clinical single-cell RNA-seq datasets and developed signatures indicative of TRM infiltration. TRM infiltration is associated with longer overall survival and abundance of T cells, NK cells, M1 macrophages, and memory B cells in the TIME. A 22-gene TRM–derived risk score was further developed to effectively classify patients into low- and high-risk categories, distinguishing overall survival and immune activation, particularly in T cell-mediated responses. Altogether, our analysis suggests that TRM abundance is associated with melanoma TIME activation and patient survival, and the TRM-based machine learning model can potentially predict prognosis in melanoma patients.

Obesity is associated with chronic inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS), and neuroinflammation has been shown to have detrimental effects on mood and cognition. The growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR), the biologically relevant receptor of the orexigenic hormone ghrelin, is primarily expressed in the brain. Our previous study showed that neuronal GHSR deletion prevents high-fat diet-induced obesity (DIO). Here, we investigated the effect of neuronal GHSR deletion on emotional and cognitive functions in DIO. The neuron-specific GHSR-deficient mice exhibited reduced depression and improved spatial memory compared to littermate controls under DIO. We further examined the cortex and hippocampus, the major regions regulating cognitive and emotional behaviors, and found that the neuronal deletion of GHSR reduced DIO-induced neuroinflammation by suppressing proinflammatory chemokines/cytokines and decreasing microglial activation. Furthermore, our data showed that neuronal GHSR deletion suppresses neuroinflammation by downregulating AMPK-autophagy signaling in neurons. In conclusion, our data reveal that neuronal GHSR inhibition protects against DIO-induced depressive-like behavior and spatial cognitive dysfunction, at least in part, through AMPK-autophagy signaling-mediated neuroinflammation.

Salmon bone soup was prepared by ultrasonic-assisted heating, and the cooking process was optimized by response surface test using soluble proteins, sensory score, and amino acid nitrogen as the indicators. Furthermore, the taste characteristics difference between fish bone soups obtained by ultrasonic-assisted heating and traditional heating was investigated by electronic tongue, amino acid automatic analyzer and high performance liquid chromatography. The results showed that the optimum conditions of salmon bone soup prepared by ultrasonic-assisted heating were as follows: Ratio of material to water 1:2 g/mL, ultrasonic time 96 min, and ultrasonic power 800 W. The soluble protein, amino nitrogen, and sensory score of fish bone soup boiled under the above conditions were 192.30 mg/mL, 0.036 g/100 mL, and 8.43, respectively, which was close to the predicted value of the model. Compared with the fishbone soup prepared by the traditional heating process, the ultrasonic-assisted heating facilitated the intensity of umami, richness, and salty taste, decreased the intensity of sourness, and increased the content of taste nucleotides and umami amino acids. In conclusion, ultrasonic-assisted cooking can improve the overall taste characteristics of salmon bone soup and enhance the flavor quality.

In this study, myosin isolated from Nemipterus virgatus was added with 0%~8%（w/w）soybean protein isolate (SPI) and the physicochemical, spectroscopic, and gel properties of the composite system were analyzed, in order to investigate the effect of interaction between myosin and SPI on the gel properties of myosin. The results showed that after the addition of SPI, the endogenous fluorescence intensity of the composite system decreased, whereas the ultraviolet absorbance, the total sulfhydryl content, and hydrogen bond as well as hydrophobic interactions increased. These results indicated that there were the hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonds, disulfide bonds, and other covalent and non-covalent interactions between SPI and Nemipterus virgatus myosin, which altered the structure and conformation of myosin. Meanwhile, the gel strength, hardness, and β-sheet content of the myosin-SPI composite gels all increased initially and then decreased as the increase addition of SPI. Furthermore, the total sulfhydryl and hydrophobic contents of the myosin-SPI composite system got the highest values when added 4% SPI, which increased by 64.46% and 13.53% compared with the control group, respectively. The gel strength and hardness of the myosin-SPI composite gels were also reached the highest values when added 4% SPI, which increased by 8.66% and 9.21% compared with the control group, respectively. It was also found that a part of α-helices transformed into β-sheets and the gel network was most compact and homogeneous. Therefore, the moderate addition of SPI could promote the aggregation and cross-linking of myosin through the interaction forces such as hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonds, and disulfide bonds, and improve the gel properties of myosin.

Previous studies have shown that feeding mice with food containing mantle tissue from Japanese scallops results in aggravated liver and kidney damage, ultimately resulting in mortality within weeks. The aim of this study is to evaluate the toxicity of scallop mantle in China’s coastal areas and explore the impact of scallop mantle toxins (SMT) on intestinal barrier integrity and gut microbiota in mice. The Illumina MiSeq sequencing of V3-V4 hypervariable regions of 16S ribosomal RNA was employed to study the alterations in gut microbiota in the feces of SMT mice. The results showed that intestinal flora abundance and diversity in the SMT group were decreased. Compared with the control group, significant increases were observed in serum indexes related to liver, intestine, inflammation, and kidney functions among SMT-exposed mice. Accompanied by varying degrees of tissue damage observed within these organs, the beneficial bacteria of Muribaculaceae and Marinifilaceae significantly reduced, while the harmful bacteria of Enterobacteriaceae and Helicobacter were significantly increased. Taken together, this article elucidates the inflammation and glucose metabolism disorder caused by scallop mantle toxin in mice from the angle of gut microbiota and metabolism. SMT can destroy the equilibrium of intestinal flora and damage the intestinal mucosal barrier, which leads to glucose metabolism disorder and intestinal dysfunction and may ultimately bring about systemic toxicity.

Autocollimators are widely used optical axis-measuring tools, but their measurement errors increase significantly when measuring under non-leveled conditions and they have a limited measurement range due to the limitations of the measurement principle. To realize axis measurement under non-leveled conditions, this paper proposes an autocollimator axis measurement method based on the strapdown inertial navigation system (SINS). First, the measurement model of the system was established. This model applies the SINS to measure the change in attitude of the autocollimator. The autocollimator was then applied to measure the angular relationship between the measured axis and its own axis, based on which the angular relationship of the axis was measured via computation through signal processing and data fusion in a multi-sensor system. After analyzing the measurement errors of the system model, the Monte Carlo method was applied to carry out a simulation analysis. This showed that the majority of the measurement errors were within ±0.002° and the overall measurement accuracy was within ±0.006°. Tests using equipment with the same parameters as those used in the simulation analysis showed that the majority of the measurement errors were within ±0.004° and the overall error was within ±0.006°, which is consistent with the simulation results. This analysis proves that this method solves the problem of the autocollimator being unable to measure the axis under non-leveled conditions and meets the needs of axis measurement with the application of autocollimators under a moving base.

In order to improve the utilization rate of silver carp fat, a by-product of silver carp surimi processing, the modified starch-based Pickering emulsion was prepared with six modified starches as solid particles and silver carp oil as oil phase. The effects of starch type, starch amount (1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, w/w), oil-to-water ratio (0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, w/w) and ionic strength (NaCl concentration: 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 mol/L) on the emulsion physicochemical properties (including particle size, Zeta potential, emulsifying properties, stability, rheological properties, and microstructure) were investigated. The results showed that, among the six modified starches, the octenyl succinic anhydride modified corn starch had the smallest particle size (146.73 nm) and the largest contact angle (71.5°), and its Pickering emulsion had the best stability. The oil-water ratio and starch amount significantly affected the physiochemical properties of the prepared emulsion, and the emulsion had gel properties at the higher level of oil-water ratio (0.5~0.6) and starch amount (4%~5%). The addition of an appropriate amount (0.3~0.5 mol/L) of sodium chloride could promote the micro-flocculation of the emulsion and enhance the stability of the emulsion. The emulsion microstructure observed by confocal laser microscopic (CLSM) revealed that the particle size of the emulsion droplets decreased with the increase of starch amount, and the oil droplets were completely wrapped by modified starch particles and formed a dense interfacial film at the addition of 2%~5% starch. In conclusion, the better performance of Pickering emulsion was achieved at the oil-water ratio 0.5, starch amount 4% and sodium chloride concentration 0.4 mol/L, respectively. The study provides a reference for the preparation of fish oil Pickering emulsion and improves its application in functional food.

In order to investigate effects of fatty acid unsaturation on the gel properties of myosin, four kinds of fatty acids (stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and α-linolenic acid) with different saturation was added into hairtail myosin. The changes of gel strength, water holding capacity, chemical forces, rheological properties, gel electrophoresis and protein secondary structure of myosin were analyzed. The results showed that gel strength and water holding capacity of myosin increased first and then decreased with the increasing of fatty acid unsaturation. The gel strength and water holding capacity of myosin-linoleic acid composite system were the highest, increasing by 59.73% and 15.73% compared with control group, respectively. The results of the rheological and electropherogram indicated that the storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G'') of myosin containing fatty acids were higher than that of control group. The G' and G'' increased first and then decreased with the increasing of fatty acid unsaturation, and reached the maximum value in the myosin-linoleic acid group. However, there was no significant change in protein composition among all the groups. Infrared spectroscopy showed that the unsaturation of fatty acid had no obvious effect on the molecular backbone of myosin, but stearic acid, oleic acid, and linoleic acid promoted the conformation transform of myosin to irregular direction. In summary, fatty acid unsaturation had a significant effect on the gel properties of myosin, and linoleic acid was the best at improving the gel properties of hairtail myosin.

Tick serine protease inhibitors (serpins) play crucial roles in tick feeding and pathogen transmission. We demonstrate that Ixodes scapularis (Ixs) nymph tick saliva serpin (S) 41 (IxsS41), secreted by Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb)-infected ticks at high abundance, is involved in regulating tick evasion of host innate immunity and promoting host colonization by Bb. Recombinant (r) proteins were expressed in Pichia pastoris, and substrate hydrolysis assays were used to determine. Ex vivo (complement and hemostasis function related) and in vivo (paw edema and effect on Bb colonization of C3H/HeN mice organs) assays were conducted to validate function. We demonstrate that rIxsS41 inhibits chymase and cathepsin G, pro-inflammatory proteases that are released by mast cells and neutrophils, the first immune cells at the tick feeding site. Importantly, stoichiometry of inhibition analysis revealed that 2.2 and 2.8 molecules of rIxsS41 are needed to 100% inhibit 1 molecule of chymase and cathepsin G, respectively, suggesting that findings here are likely events at the tick feeding site. Furthermore, chymase-mediated paw edema, induced by the mast cell degranulator, compound 48/80 (C48/80), was blocked by rIxsS41. Likewise, rIxsS41 reduced membrane attack complex (MAC) deposition via the alternative and lectin complement activation pathways and dose-dependently protected Bb from complement killing. Additionally, co-inoculating C3H/HeN mice with Bb together with rIxsS41 or with a mixture (rIxsS41 and C48/80). Findings in this study suggest that IxsS41 markedly contributes to tick feeding and host colonization by Bb. Therefore, we conclude that IxsS41 is a potential candidate for an anti-tick vaccine to prevent transmission of the Lyme disease agent.

Abstract Background Systemic sclerosis (SSc; also known as “scleroderma”) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by extensive fibrosis, vascular changes, and immunologic dysregulation. Baicalein (phenolic flavonoid derived from Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi) has been used to treat the pathological processes of various fibrotic and inflammatory diseases. In this study, we investigated the effect of baicalein on the major pathologic characteristics of SSc: fibrosis, B-cell abnormalities, and inflammation. Methods The effect of baicalein on collagen accumulation and expression of fibrogenic markers in human dermal fibroblasts were analyzed. SSc mice were produced by injecting bleomycin and treated with baicalein (25, 50, or 100 mg/kg). The antifibrotic features of baicalein and its mechanisms were investigated by histologic examination, hydroxyproline assay, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, western blotting and flow cytometry. Results Baicalein (5–120 μM) significantly inhibited the accumulation of the extracellular matrix and fibroblast activation in transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1- and platelet derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced human dermal fibroblasts, as evidenced by abrogated deposition of total collagen, decreased secretion of soluble collagen, reduced collagen contraction capability and downregulation of various fibrogenesis molecules. In a bleomycin-induced model of dermal fibrosis in mice, baicalein (25–100 mg/kg) restored dermal architecture, ameliorated inflammatory infiltrates, and attenuated dermal thickness and collagen accumulation in a dose-dependent manner. According to flow cytometry, baicalein reduced the proportion of B cells (B220+ lymphocytes) and increased the proportion of memory B cells (B220+CD27+ lymphocytes) in the spleens of bleomycin-induced mice. Baicalein treatment potently attenuated serum levels of cytokines (interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-17A, tumor necrosis factor-α), chemokines (monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, macrophage inflammatory protein-1 beta) and autoantibodies (anti-scleroderma 70 (Scl-70), anti-polymyositis-scleroderma (PM-Scl), anti-centromeres, anti-double stranded DNA (dsDNA). In addition, baicalein treatment can significantly inhibit the activation of TGF-β1 signaling in dermal fibroblasts and bleomycin-induce mice of SSc, evidenced by reducing the expression of TGF-β1 and IL-11, as well as inhibiting both small mother against decapentaplegic homolog 3 (SMAD3) and extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) activation. Conclusions These findings suggest that baicalein has therapeutic potential against SSc, exerting modulating B-cell abnormalities, anti-inflammatory effects, and antifibrosis.

In this study, the frozen surimi was select as the main raw material, and the effects of starch types, and the additions of starch, salt, leavening agent and egg white powder on the gel strength, expansion ratio, texture properties, and sensory score of surimi billets expanded by microwave were investigated by using single factor experiments. The key factors that influence the quality of surimi billets were screened by the Plackett-Burman experiment, and the optimal formulation of the microwave expanded surimi billets was determined by Box-Behnken design and response surface methodology. The results showed that the optimal starch added in the microwave expanded surimi billet was glutinous rice starch. The amount of salt, glutinous rice starch and leavening agent were the three key factors that determined the quality of surimi billets. The optimal formula of microwave expanded surimi billet was obtained at the salt amount of 2.16% , the glutinous rice flour amount of 6.26%, the compound leavening agent amount of 0.49% and the egg white powder amount of 0.9%, based on the weight of surimi. Under this condition, the gel strength of microwave expanded surimi billet was 16729.33±270.72 g·mm, and the sensory score was 85.8±0.84, respectively, and there were no significant difference between the verification value and the predicted values (P>0.05). The study provided a reference to the development of new surimi products.

Vibrio, Gram-negative pathogenic bacterium, are commonly found in aquatic environments. Not only it can cause food poisoning and wound infection in humans, but also easily lead to spoilage in seafood. Biofilm formation regulated by quorum sensing is an important reason for Vibrio resistance and infection. In this study, the action mechanism of quorum sensing, biofilm formation and drug resistance in Vibrio are reviewed. The quorum sensing system in Vibrio is summarized. The correlation between quorum sensing system and biofilm in Vibrio is discussed. Effect of biofilm formation on drug resistance of Vibrio is mainly elaborated from three aspects in limiting the penetration of fungicides, inducing the adaptability of bacterial phenotype and horizontal transmission of drug resistance genes. In addition, the research status of quorum sensing inhibitors (QSIs）for control Vibrio biofilm, including chemical synthetic QSIs, QSIs derived from plant and microbiological, is further summarized. The study aims at providing reference for solving the problem of seafood spoilage and foodborne diseases caused by Vibrio.

Oncorhynchus mykiss is delicious and contains abundant flavor substances. However, few studies focused on umami peptides of O. mykiss. In the current work, umami peptides derived from O. mykiss were identified using virtual screening, molecular docking, and electronic tongue analysis. First, the O. mykiss protein was hydrolyzed using the PeptideCutter online enzymolysis program. Subsequently, water-soluble and toxicity screening were performed by Innovagen and ToxinPred software, respectively. The potential peptides were docked with umami receptor T1R1/T1R3. Furthermore, taste properties of potential peptides were validated by electronic tongue. Docking results suggested that the three tetrapeptide EANK, EEAK, and EMQK could enter the binding pocket in the T1R1 cavity, wherein Arg151, Asp147, Gln52, and Arg277 may play key roles in the production of umami taste. Electronic tongue results showed that the umami value of EANK, EEAK, and EMQK were stronger than monosodium glutamate. This work provides a new insight for the screening of umami peptides in O. mykiss.

Soluble dietary fiber (SDF) benefits human health, and different extraction methods might modify the structure and functions of the SDFs. Radish is rich in dietary fiber. To assess the impact of various extraction techniques on the properties and functions of radish SDF, the SDFs were obtained from white radish pomace using alkaline, ultrasonic-assisted, and fermentation-assisted extraction methods. Analysis was conducted on the structure, physicochemical characteristics, thermal properties, and functional attributes of the SDFs. The study revealed that various extraction techniques can impact the monosaccharides composition and functionality of the SDFs. Compared with the other two extraction methods, the surface structures of SDFs obtained by fermentation-assisted extraction were looser and more porous, and the SDF had better water solubility and water/oil holding capacity. The adsorption capacities of glucose and cholesterol of the SDFs obtained from fermentation-assisted extraction were also improved. Wickerhamomyces anomalus YFJ252 seems the most appropriate strain to ferment white radish pomace to acquire SDF; the water holding, oil holding, glucose absorption capacity, and cholesterol absorption capacity at pH 2 and pH 7 have a 3.06, 1.65, 3.19, 1.27, and 1.83 fold increase than the SDF extracted through alkaline extraction method.

To investigate the flavor profile of triploid rainbow trout from Qinghai Province, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used to analyze the flavor compounds of fish cultured in net cages from Longyangxia, Gongboxia and Laxiwa. Results showed that the inosinic acid (IMP) content of farmed rainbow trout in Qinghai Province was 176~242 mg/100 g. The IMP content of rainbow trout in Gongboxia and Laxiwa was significantly higher than that in Longyangxia group (P

Abstract Magnet‐optical materials embracing coupled magnetic and photoluminescent properties in single phase are promising in microelectronics and optoelectronic devices. However, the current research mainly focuses on traditional inorganic materials, and there are few reports on molecule materials. Recently, we synthesized an organic–inorganic hybrid complex (C6H5C2H3FNH3)2MnCl4 (1) with perovskite structure. Physical measurements show that 1 not only behaves as an antiferromagnet with spin canting but also exhibits unusual fluorescent properties. Importantly, under the magnetic field at different temperatures, the luminous intensity of 1 changed, and a red‐shift occurred with obviously optical hysteresis. These phenomena directly prove the existence of magneto‐optical coupling in 1. More interestingly, the optical hysteresis can be observed in both low and high field, which is unprecedented in other molecular materials. Even in traditional inorganic materials, it can only be observed in strong field. This special function provides the possibility for the application of low energy consumption optoelectronic devices.

The effect of oat β-glucan (OG) combined with ultrasound treatment on the gelation properties of silver carp surimi with different salt contents was investigated. The results demonstrated that the gelation properties of surimi gels at high salt concentration were superior than those at low salt level. The addition of OG or ultrasound treatment could significantly enhance the texture properties, gel strength and water holding capacity (WHC) of gel samples, regardless of salt contents. The ultrasound treatment improved the whiteness of surimi gels, whereas the OG addition slightly declined the whiteness. Both OG addition and ultrasound treatment markedly reduced the total sulfhydryl content (total SH) and strengthened the hydrophobic interactions, forming the more uniform and denser gel network structures, hence more water was captured in network structures and became immobilized. Moreover, the combined treatment of OG and ultrasound showed synergic action on the gelation properties of surimi, and the gel strength and WHC of low-salt surimi gel treated by the combination of OG and ultrasound were even superior than that of high-salt gel without OG by traditional heating.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most prevalent demyelinating disease of the central nervous system, characterized by myelin destruction, axonal degeneration, and progressive loss of neurological functions. Remyelination is considered an axonal protection strategy and may enable functional recovery, but the mechanisms of myelin repair, especially after chronic demyelination, remain poorly understood. Here, we used the cuprizone demyelination mouse model to investigate spatiotemporal characteristics of acute and chronic de- and remyelination and motor functional recovery following chronic demyelination. Extensive remyelination occurred after both the acute and chronic insults, but with less robust glial responses and slower myelin recovery in the chronic phase. Axonal damage was found at the ultrastructural level in the chronically demyelinated corpus callosum and in remyelinated axons in the somatosensory cortex. Unexpectedly, we observed the development of functional motor deficits after chronic remyelination. RNA sequencing of isolated brain regions revealed significantly altered transcripts across the corpus callosum, cortex and hippocampus. Pathway analysis identified selective upregulation of extracellular matrix/collagen pathways and synaptic signaling in the chronically de/remyelinating white matter. Our study demonstrates regional differences of intrinsic reparative mechanisms after a chronic demyelinating insult and suggests a potential link between long-term motor function alterations and continued axonal damage during chronic remyelination. Moreover, the transcriptome dataset of three brain regions and over an extended de/remyelination period provides a valuable platform for a better understanding of the mechanisms of myelin repair as well as the identification of potential targets for effective remyelination and neuroprotection for progressive MS.

Tobacco belongs to the family Solanaceae, which easily forms continuous cropping obstacles. Continuous cropping exacerbates the accumulation of autotoxins in tobacco rhizospheric soil, affects the normal metabolism and growth of plants, changes soil microecology, and severely reduces the yield and quality of tobacco. In this study, the types and composition of tobacco autotoxins under continuous cropping systems are summarized, and a model is proposed, suggesting that autotoxins can cause toxicity to tobacco plants at the cell level, plant-growth level, and physiological process level, negatively affecting soil microbial life activities, population number, and community structure and disrupting soil microecology. A combined strategy for managing tobacco autotoxicity is proposed based on the breeding of superior varieties, and this approach can be combined with adjustments to cropping systems, the induction of plant immunity, and the optimization of cultivation and biological control measures. Additionally, future research directions are suggested and challenges associated with autotoxicity are provided. This study aims to serve as a reference and provide inspirations needed to develop green and sustainable strategies and alleviate the continuous cropping obstacles of tobacco. It also acts as a reference for resolving continuous cropping challenges in other crops.

This review summarizes current studies on fermented vegetables, analyzing the changes in nutritional components during pickling, the health benefits of fermented vegetables, and their safety concerns. Additionally, the review provides an overview of the applications of emergent non-thermal technologies for addressing these safety concerns during the production and processing of fermented vegetables. It was found that vitamin C would commonly be lost, the soluble protein would degrade into free amino acids, new nutrient compositions would be produced, and the flavor correlated with the chemical changes. These changes would be influenced by the variety/location of raw materials, the original bacterial population, starter cultures, fermentation conditions, seasoning additions, and post-fermentation processing. Consuming fermented vegetables benefits human health, including antibacterial effects, regulating intestinal bacterial populations, and promoting health (anti-cancer effects, anti-diabetes effects, and immune regulation). However, fermented vegetables have chemical and biological safety concerns, such as biogenic amines and the formation of nitrites, as well as the existence of pathogenic microorganisms. To reduce hazardous components and control the quality of fermented vegetables, unique starter cultures, high pressure, ultrasound, cold plasma, photodynamic, and other technologies can be used to solve these problems.

Atmospheric mercury and water-soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs) are commonly observable airborne pollutants in the atmosphere that may have similar emission sources. In this study, the interrelated pollution characteristics of atmospheric speciated mercury and WSIIs were studied using a Piper diagram, correlation analysis, pollution episode analysis and potential source contribution function (PSCF) techniques. Also, an empirical regression equation for predicting the temporal variation in gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) was constructed. The results showed that the concentrations of GEM and particle-bound mercury (PBM) roughly increased with the increasing percentage values of NH4+ in cationic normality, and exponentially increased with the decreasing percentage values of Na+ + Mg2+ in cationic normality. Correlation analysis revealed that the atmospheric speciated mercury was positively (p < 0.01) correlated with most water-soluble inorganic ions, especially for GEM, which was closely correlated with NO2, NOx, CO, PM2.5, NO3− SO42−, NH4+ and K+ (r > 0.5, p < 0.01), indicating that the emission sources of GEM were related to fossil fuel and biomass combustion, industrial activities, and traffic exhausts. Pollution episode analysis showed that PM2.5, WSIIs (including SO42−, NO3−, NH4+, K+ and Cl−), SO2 and NO2 generally exhibited synchronous variations with GEM and PBM, and positive correlations were observed between GEM and PM2.5, SO42−, NO3−, NH4+, K+, Cl−, SO2 and NO2 (r = 0.35–0.74, p-value < 0.01). In addition, the potential source region of GEM was similar to that of PM2.5, SO42−, NO3−, NH4+, K+ and Ca2+. Based on the above findings, a satisfactory empirical regression equation, with PM2.5, NOx, CO and the percentage value of Na+ + Mg2+ in cationic normality as independent variables for GEM simulation, was constructed. The result showed that the variation in GEM concentrations could be predicted well by these variables. This model could serve as a potential substitute tool for GEM measurement in the future.

In order to explore the changes of Trachurus japonicus freshness quality during frozen storage, the color, conductivity, ice crystal size and morphology, texture, K value, TBA value, Raman spectrum, secondary structure of total protein, total sulfhydryl content, active sulfhydryl content and Ca2+-ATPase activity of myofibrillar protein were investigated during the frozen storage of −18 ℃ for 90 days with vacuum and air packaging. The results showed that the K value, L* value, whiteness value and TBA value of samples both in VP and AP groups increased gradually with the extend of storage time, among which the K value increased by 65.83% and 66.44% after frozen storage for 90 days, respectively. At the same time, the porosity of ice crystal in fish muscle increased gradually, while a* value, b* value, hardness, chewiness and resilience decreased gradually, however the cohesiveness and conductivity increased firstly and then decreased. The α-helix percentage of muscle protein decreased from 63.28% to 43.70% and 41.91%, respectively, while β-folding, β-turning and random curling percentage increased gradually. The total sulfhydryl content and active sulfhydryl content of myofibrillar protein decreased gradually, Ca2+-ATPase activity decreased by 63.58% and 72.52%, respectively. The packaging had little different effect on muscle quality during frozen storage, but had a certain effect on protein biochemical characteristics in which vacuum packaging effect was slightly better than that of air packaging. Correlation analysis showed that K value, whiteness value, TBA value, sulfhydryl content, Ca2+-ATPase activity, total protein secondary structure content of the samples of the two groups were significantly correlated (P

To study the physicochemical properties of micro-nanoparticles (MNPs) in thermoultrasonic treated fishbone soup, it was subjected to ultra-filtration with a 100 kDa ultrafiltration membrane to obtain large MNPs (LMNPs) and small MNPs (SMNPs). LMNPs and SMNPs were treated with force-breakers, and the interactions of the MNPs with five characteristic volatile compounds were investigated. LMNPs covered most proteins (222.66 mg/mL) and fatty acids (363.76 mg/g), while SMNPs was mostly soluble small molecules with taste substances like total free amino acids (85.26 mg/g), organic acids (2.55 mg/mL), and 5′-nucleotides (169.17 mg/100 mL). The stability of LMNPs is significantly higher than raw bone soup, and SMNPs can exist stably in the solution. Correlation analysis between flavor substance content and flavor suggested that the overall flavor profile of halibut bone soup was closely related to the content changes of 72 significant influence variables. The binding of LMNPs to characteristic flavor compounds was largely affected by hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonds, and ionic effects. While the binding of SMNPs to characteristic flavor compounds was largely determined by hydrophobic interaction and hydrogen bonding. This study explores the characteristics of MNPs and provides the possibility to clarify the interaction mechanism between MNPs and flavor.

Breast cancer is considered the most prevalent malignancy due to its high incidence rate, recurrence, and metastasis in women that makes it one of the deadliest cancers. The current study aimed to predict the genes associated with the recurrence and metastasis of breast cancer and to validate their effect on MDA-MB-231 cells. Through the bioinformatics analysis, the transcription factor 7 cofactor (MLLT11) as the target gene was obtained. MLLT11-specific siRNA was synthesized and transfected into MDA-MB-231 cells. The results demonstrated that the siRNA significantly reduced the MLLT11 mRNA levels. Moreover, cell migration and invasion, as well as the protein levels of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), AKT, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) 2, and MMP9, were significantly lower in the groups treated with siRNA while the apoptosis was augmented. Collectively, MLLT11 siRNA elicited ameliorative properties on breast cancer cells, possibly via the inhibition of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

The antioxidative peptides were prepared from the muscle of Pacific saury by enzymatic hydrolysis. Based on the degree of hydrolysis(DH), the content of TCA-soluble peptide, DPPH free radical scavenging rate, Fe3+ reducing power, ·OH radical scavenging rate and O2−· radical scavenging rate, the optimal protease was selected from six kinds of commercial enzyme(neutral protease, alkaline protease, flavour protease, papain, bromelain and trypsin). Single factor experiments were carried out with five factors: Solid-liquid ratio, the amount of enzyme, enzymatic hydrolysis time, temperature and pH, and three factors (solid-liquid ratio, the amount of enzyme and enzymatic hydrolysis time) were selected to optimize the response surface methodology (RSM). And the molecular weight distribution and free amino acid content of the hydrolysate were determined under the optimal conditions. The results showed that the optimal protease was neutral protease. The influence of three factors on the antioxidant activity of the enzymatic hydrolysate were the solid-liquid ratio> the amount of enzyme> enzymatic hydrolysis time. The optimal preparation processes of the antioxidative active peptide were determined as follows: the solid-liquid ratio was 1:2.67 (mass-volume ratio, g/mL), the amount of enzyme was 0.60%, enzymatic hydrolysis time was 4.04 h, temperature was 50 ℃, and pH7.0. Under these conditions, DPPH free radical scavenging rate and Fe3+ reducing power were 92.33% and 0.711 (20 mg/mL), respectively, which were no significant difference with the predicted value (P>0.05). It could be seen that the antioxidative peptide peptide optimized by response surface methodology had high antioxidant activity. Under the optimal conditions, 97.87% of the components with molecular weight less than 3000 Da were the main components of the hydrolysate. A total of 16 kinds of free amino acids were detected, among which essential amino acids accounted for 39.79% and antioxidant active amino acids accounted for 37.01% of the total amino acids. This study provided some reference for the utilization of high value and the development of peptides functional food of Pacific saury.

In order to quickly and accurately non-destructive real-time monitoring of fish freshness, a visual colorimetric array sensor was constructed in this study based on anodized aluminum flakes as the substrate and 13 indicators selected as gas-sensitive materials. The freshness of turbot during storage was measured by using the constructed colorimetric array sensor. The results showed that the total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) value of turbot reached 32.85 mg/100 g when the storage time was more than 22 h at 25 ℃, and the fish was rotten. At this time, the color of the array points in the colorimetric sensor array changed. The RGB values of sensor array points before and after response were extracted and subtracted, and the clustering analysis and principal component analysis were carried out. The results showed that the colorimetric array sensor was able to accurately distinguish the freshness of fish in different storage time periods. In addition, the array sensor was applied to detect the freshness of carp and American redfish at different storage times, and the results showed that there was no significant difference between the TVB-N values predicted by the colorimetric array sensor and the actual measured values. Therefore, it is feasible to apply the sensor to fish freshness monitoring.

Polybutene-1 with form I crystals exhibits excellent creep resistance and environmental stress crack resistance. The filaments of polybutene-1 and its random copolymer with 4 mol% ethylene co-units were produced via extrusion melt spinning, which are expected to be in form I states and show outstanding mechanical properties. The variances in microstructure, crystallization–melting behavior, and mechanical properties between homopolymer and copolymer filaments were analyzed using SEM, SAXS/WAXD, DSC, and tensile tests. The crystallization of form II and subsequent phase transition into form I finished after the melt-spinning process in the copolymer sample while small amounts of form II crystals remained in homopolymer filaments. Surprisingly, copolymer filaments exhibited higher tensile strength and Young’s modulus than homopolymer filaments, while the homopolymer films showed better mechanical properties than copolymer films. The high degree of orientation and long fibrous crystals play a critical role in the superior properties of copolymer filaments. The results indicate that the existence of ethylene increases the chain flexibility and benefits the formation of intercrystalline links during spinning, which contributes to an enhancement of mechanical properties. The structure–property correlation of melt-spun PB-1 filaments provides a reference for the development of polymer fibers with excellent creep resistance.

In this paper, SEPAM_HRNet, a high-resolution pose-estimation model that incorporates the squeeze-and-excitation and pixel-attention-mask (SEPAM) module is proposed. Feature pyramid extraction, channel attention, and pixel-attention masks are integrated into the SEPAM module, resulting in improved model performance. The construction of the model involves replacing ordinary convolutions with the plug-and-play SEPAM module, which leads to the creation of the SEPAMneck module and SEPAMblock module. To evaluate the model’s performance, the YOGA2022 human yoga poses teaching dataset is presented. This dataset comprises 15,350 images that capture ten basic yoga pose types—Warrior I Pose, Warrior II Pose, Bridge Pose, Downward Dog Pose, Flat Pose, Inclined Plank Pose, Seated Pose, Triangle Pose, Phantom Chair Pose, and Goddess Pose—with a total of five participants. The YOGA2022 dataset serves as a benchmark for evaluating the accuracy of the human pose-estimation model. The experimental results demonstrated that the SEPAM_HRNet model achieved improved accuracy in predicting human keypoints on both the common objects in context (COCO) calibration set and the YOGA2022 calibration set, compared to other state-of-the-art human pose-estimation models with the same image resolution and environment configuration. These findings emphasize the superior performance of the SEPAM_HRNet model.

Prostate cancer is a cancer type associated with a high level of racial and socioeconomic disparities as reported by many previous studies. However, the changes in these disparities in the past two decades have not been systematically studied. In this study, we investigated the Surveillance Epidemiology End Results (SEER) data for prostate cancer patients diagnosed during 2004–2018. African Americans and Asians showed significantly better and worse cancer-specific survival (CSS), respectively, compared to non-Hispanic white individuals after adjusting for confounding factors such as age and cancer stage. Importantly, the data indicated that racial disparities fluctuated and reached the highest level during 2009–2013, and thereafter, it showed a substantial improvement. Such a change cannot be explained by the improvement in early diagnosis but is mainly driven by the differential improvement in CSS between races. Compared with Asians and non-Hispanic whites, African American patients achieved a more significant survival improvement during 2014–2018, while no significant improvement was observed for Hispanics. In addition, the SEER data showed that high-income patients had significantly longer CSS than low-income patients. Such a socioeconomic disparity was continuously increasing during 2004–2018, which was caused by the increased survival benefits of the high-income patients with respect to the low-income patients. Our study suggests that more efforts and resources should be allocated to improve the treatment of patients with low socioeconomic status.

The current manual reading of substation pointer meters wastes human resources, and existing algorithms have limitations in accuracy and robustness for detecting various pointer meters. This paper proposes a method for recognizing pointer meters based on Yolov7 and Hough transform to improve their automatic readability. The proposed method consists of three main contributions: (1) Using Yolov7 object detection technology, which is the latest Yolo technology, to enhance instrument recognition accuracy. (2) Providing a formula for calculating the angle of a square pointer meter after Hough transformation. (3) Applying OCR recognition to the instrument dial to obtain the model and scale value. This information helps differentiate between meter models and determine the measuring range. Test results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm achieves high accuracy and robustness in detecting different types and ranges of instruments. The map of the Yolov7 model on the instrument dataset is as high as 99.8%. Additionally, the accuracy of pointer readings obtained using this method exceeds 95%, indicating promising applications for a wide range of scenarios.

The ERF gene family is widely present in plants and has crucial regulatory importance in plant seed development, organ morphogenesis, the synthesis of secondary metabolites, and coping with abiotic stresses such as cold and drought. In this study, 90 members of CsERF were screened by bioinformatics tools analysis and named CsERF1–CsERF90. Their molecular characteristics and systematic evolution were studied, and the tissue expression characteristics of CSERF genes and the composition of promoter cis-acting elements were predicted. The results showed that 81 proteins encoded by CsERF genes had conserved motifs 1, 2, and 3, while 64 members possessed other motifs. The theoretical isoelectric point was between 4.49 and 10.24, and 85 members constituted unstable proteins, while the rest were stable proteins. Subcellular localization predicted that 77 members were in the nucleus, 8 were in the chloroplasts, and 5 were in the mitochondria. The promoter sequence of CsERFs was found to include not only cis-acting elements related to hormone regulation, such as gibberellin (41), methyl jasmonate (110), and abscisic acid (185), but also cis-acting elements involved in low-temperature response (56) and light response (22), indicating that CsERFs have a key role in plant growth and abiotic stress. Phylogenetic analysis of tea plant and Arabidopsis thaliana ERF gene families showed that the tea plant ERF gene families could be divided into six groups, with B3 having 29 members at most and B1 having only 3 members at least. The phylogenetic tree constructed using only the CsERF genes is also divided into six groups, with slightly different but minimal differences in members. Of the 90 tea plant ERF members, 85 were located on 15 chromosomes, whereas 5 were not located on chromosomes. The collinearity analysis showed that there were 41 homologous gene pairs among the CsERFs, and these homologous gene pairs may have the same function. According to the expression of CsERFs in cold-stressed tea plant and in different tissues, 90 CsERF genes played their respective roles in different tissues and stages to regulate plant growth, and some of them participated in the process of cold stress tolerance. This study provides a theoretical foundation for the study of tea plant growth and development and low-temperature resistance.

Abstract Thyroid hormone (TH) and thyroid hormone receptor (THR) regulate stem cell proliferation and differentiation during development, as well as during tissue renewal and repair in the adult. THR undergoes posttranslational modification by small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO). We generated the THRA (K283Q/K288R)−/− mouse model for in vivo studies and used human primary preadipocytes expressing the THRA sumoylation mutant (K283R/K288R) and isolated preadipocytes from mutant mice for in vitro studies. THRA mutant mice had reduced white adipose stores and reduced adipocyte cell diameter on a chow diet, compared to wild-type, and these differences were further enhanced after a high fat diet. Reduced preadipocyte proliferation in mutant mice, compared to wt, was shown after in vivo labeling of preadipocytes with EdU and in preadipocytes isolated from mice fat stores and studied in vitro. Mice with the desumoylated THRA had disruptions in cell cycle G1/S transition and this was associated with a reduction in the availability of cyclin D2 and cyclin-dependent kinase 2. The genes coding for cyclin D1, cyclin D2, cyclin-dependent kinase 2 and Culin3 are stimulated by cAMP Response Element Binding Protein (CREB) and contain CREB Response Elements (CREs) in their regulatory regions. We demonstrate, by Chromatin Immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay, that in mice with the THRA K283Q/K288R mutant there was reduced CREB binding to the CRE. Mice with a THRA sumoylation mutant had reduced fat stores on chow and high fat diets and reduced adipocyte diameter.

IntroductionA number of evidences have proved that “Nostoc commune” Vauch can improve human immunity and prevent diseases, however, the specific mechanism remains unclear. The biological activity of the main protein component of “Nostoc commune” Vauch extracellular matrix– a water-stress protein (WSP) still needs to be elucidated.MethodsIn our study, we validated the role of WSP in gastric cancer metastasis at the cellular level, the organoid level and in mouse models, and also studied the role of EGFRVIII and downstream signaling molecules after WSP treatment.ResultsWe found that WSP can significantly inhibit the metastasis of gastric cancer cells. Interestingly, we found that the anti-metastasis ability of WSP on gastric cancer was related to membrane protein receptor EGFRVIII, which was realized by inhibiting the downstream EGFRVIII signaling pathway. In terms of mechanism, WSP can inhibit the downstream EGFRVIII signaling pathway Akt-PI3K and further inhibit the secretion of cancer-related metastasis proteins such as MMP2 and MMP9, thus, significantly affecting the metastasis of gastric cancer cells.DiscussionGiven the anticancer properties of WSP, drug developers and manufacturers can further develop protein drugs for cancer patients using protein engineering techniques based on the properties of WSP.

Vehicle Re-identification is to find out the exact vehicle captured by other cameras given a vehicle image. In natural traffic surveillance systems, vehicle re-identification can play a role in target vehicles localization, supervision, and criminal investigation. While current convolutional neural network-based approaches have been very successful, most studies consider learning representations from individual images, ignoring potential interactions between them. The Swin Transformer method currently shows excellent advantages in image classification. It can handle features at different scales like convolutional neural networks and make elements more closely related to each other, enhancing the learning of robust features and improving feature robustness and discrimination compared to convolutional neural nets. Therefore, this paper adopts the Swin Transformer method for vehicle re-identification and conducts experimental validation on two large vehicle datasets, VeRi-776, and VehicleID. The experimental results show that the recognition effect of this method is significantly better than existing vehicle re-identification methods, such as VAM, FDA-Net, TransReID, etc.

A monolayer Caco-2 cell model was established to explore the effects of sea bass sausage digestive juice containing phosphate on calcium ion transport. Differential proteins of Caco-2 cells treated with fish sausage juice were detected and analyzed by gene ontology (GO) functional annotation and kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses. Results revealed that after treatment with 0.23 mg/mL digestive juice of perch sausage in vitro, Caco-2 cell viability was the highest at 72 h (99.84%). Additionally, 0.23 mg/mL digestive juice of perch sausage in vitro significantly increased calcium ion transport. The transfer volume was 1.396 μg/well. Fish sausages containing phosphate significantly affected the protein expression levels of Caco-2 cells. Two hundred one differential proteins were detected, including 114 up-regulated and 87 down-regulated proteins. The main differential proteins included P02795, Q9P0W0, Q96PU5, Q9GZT9 and Q5EBL8. The adjustment ratios of the fish sausage group were 0.7485, 1.373, 1.2535, 0.6775, and 0.809, respectively. The pathway analysis showed that phosphate affected calcium ion absorption and transport through the P02795 enrichment pathway. The fish sausage group showed that the immune-related functions of cells were affected. This study expounds the effects of water-retaining agents on the nutritional quality of aquatic products and provides theoretical support for the research and application of surimi products.