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Objective: To identify the changes in the quality of life and speech recognition ability of older pre-lingual deaf patients before and after cochlear implant surgery.Methods:A total of patients with pre-linguistic deafness who underwent unilateral cochlear implant surgery at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University from February 2012 to November 2018 were taken as the research object. The CAP scale,SIR scale,and Nijmegen cochlear implant scale were used to assess the patient's condition for the quality of life before and 2 years after the operation,and compared the postoperative and preoperative scores were compared. At the same time,the angel language training was adopted. The auditory rehabilitation system and the Chinese open speech perception assessment system were used to test the speech recognition rate of patients before and 2 years after implantation. Results:The quality of life of patients undergoing cochlear implant surgery improved two years after the operation. CAP,SIR scores and NCIQ sub-fields（basic voice perception,advanced voice perception,speech ability,selfconfidence, activity ability,and social communication）were significantly improved compared with those preoperatively,and the speech recognitionrate score was also improved. There was a significant correlation between the quality of life and speech recognition of the test patients. Conclusion:Cochlear implantation has a significant effect on improving the quality of life and speech recognition ability of older pre-linguistic deaf patients. The correlation between quality of life and speech recognition still needs to be further explored. Therefore,-，quality of life and language recognition are the assessment of older pre-linguistic deafness. The rehabilitation effect of patients after cochlear implantation needs to be considered at the same time.

Aristolochic acid (AA) toxicity has been shown in humans regarding carcinogenesis, nephrotoxicity, and mutagenicity. Monitoring the AA content in drug homologous and healthy foods is necessary for the health of humans. In this study, a monoclonal antibody (mAb) with high sensitivity for aristolochic acid I (AA-I) was prepared. Based on the obtained mAb, a chemiluminescent immunoassay (CLEIA) against AA-I was developed, which showed the 50% decrease in the RLUmax (IC50) value of 1.8 ng/mL and the limit of detection (LOD) of 0.4 ng/mL. Carbon dots with red emission at 620 nm, namely rCDs, were synthesized and employed in conventional indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (icELISA) to improve the assay sensitivity of a fluoroimmunoassay (FIA). Oxidized 3,3′′,5,5′′-tetramethylbenzidine dihydrochloride (oxTMB) can quench the emission of the rCDs through the inner-filter effect; therefore, the fluorescence intensity of rCDs can be regulated by the concentration of mAb. As a result, the assay sensitivity of FIA was improved by five-fold compared to CLEIA. A good relationship between the results of the proposed assays and the standard ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometer (UPLC-QQQ-MS/MS) of real samples indicated good accuracy and practicability of CLEIA and FIA.

Background Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are molecular chaperones that are involved in many normal cellular processes and various kinds of environmental stress. There is still no report regarding the diversity and phylogenetics research of HSP superfamily of genes at whole genome level in insects, and the HSP gene association with pyrethroid resistance is also not well known. The present study investigated the diversity, classification, scaffold location, characteristics, and phylogenetics of the superfamily of genes in Anopheles sinensis genome, and the HSP genes associated with pyrethroid resistance. Methods The present study identified the HSP genes in the An. sinensis genome, analysed their characteristics, and deduced phylogenetic relationships of all HSPs in An. sinensis, Anopheles gambiae, Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes aegypti by bioinformatic methods. Importantly, the present study screened the HSPs associated with pyrethroid resistance using three field pyrethroid-resistant populations with RNA-seq and RT-qPCR, and looked over the HSP gene expression pattern for the first time in An. sinensis on the time-scale post insecticide treatment with RT-qPCR. Results There are 72 HSP genes in An. sinensis genome, and they are classified into five families and 11 subfamilies based on their molecular weight, homology and phylogenetics. Both RNA-seq and qPCR analysis revealed that the expression of AsHSP90AB, AsHSP70-2 and AsHSP21.7 are significantly upregulated in at least one field pyrethroid-resistant population. Eleven genes are significantly upregulated in different period after pyrethroid exposure. The HSP90, sHSP and HSP70 families are proposed to be involved in pyrethroid stress response based in expression analyses of three field pyrethroid-resistant populations, and expression pattern on the time scale post insecticide treatment. The AsHSP90AB gene is proposed to be the essential HSP gene for pyrethroid stress response in An. sinensis. Conclusions This study provides the information frame for HSP superfamily of genes, and lays an important basis for the better understanding and further research of HSP function in insect adaptability to diverse environments. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12936-019-2770-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background UDP-glycosyltransferase (UGT) is an important biotransformation superfamily of enzymes. They catalyze the transfer of glycosyl residues from activated nucleotide sugars to acceptor hydrophobic molecules, and function in several physiological processes, including detoxification, olfaction, cuticle formation, pigmentation. The diversity, classification, scaffold location, characteristics, phylogenetics, and evolution of the superfamily of genes at whole genome level, and their association and mutations associated with pyrethroid resistance are still little known. Methods The present study identified UGT genes in Anopheles sinensis genome, classified UGT genes in An. sinensis, Anopheles gambiae, Aedes aegypti and Drosophila melanogaster genomes, and analysed the scaffold location, characteristics, phylogenetics, and evolution of An. sinensis UGT genes using bioinformatics methods. The present study also identified the UGTs associated with pyrethroid resistance using three field pyrethroid-resistant populations with RNA-seq and RT-qPCR, and the mutations associated with pyrethroid resistance with genome re-sequencing in An. sinensis. Results There are 30 putative UGTs in An. sinensis genome, which are classified into 12 families (UGT301, UGT302, UGT306, UGT308, UGT309, UGT310, UGT313, UGT314, UGT315, UGT36, UGT49, UGT50) and further into 23 sub-families. The UGT308 is significantly expanded in gene number compared with other families. A total of 119 UGTs from An. sinensis, An. gambiae, Aedes aegypti and Drosophila melanogaster genomes are classified into 19 families, of which seven are specific for three mosquito species and seven are specific for Drosophila melanogaster. The UGT308 and UGT302 are proposed to main families involved in pyrethroid resistance. The AsUGT308D3 is proposed to be the essential UGT gene for the participation in biotransformation in pyrethroid detoxification process, which is possibly regulated by eight SNPs in its 3′ flanking region. The UGT302A3 is also associated with pyrethroid resistance, and four amino acid mutations in its coding sequences might enhance its catalytic activity and further result in higher insecticide resistance. Conclusions This study provides the diversity, phylogenetics and evolution of UGT genes, and potential UGT members and mutations involved in pyrethroid resistance in An. sinensis, and lays an important basis for the better understanding and further research on UGT function in defense against insecticide stress. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12936-019-2705-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Thirteen cuticular proteins (CPs) families have been recognized in arthropods. In this study, 250 Anopheles sinensis CP genes were identified and named based on genome and transcriptome sequences. They were classified into 10 families based on motifs and phylogenetic analyses. In 11 other insect species, 9 had CP numbers > 150 while Apis mellifera and Tribolium castaneum had CP numbers less than 52. The CPs of 8 species occupied > 1.4% of the total genomic gene number whereas in 3 species the CPs occupied < 1%. The phylogenies for each CP family in An. sinensis were constructed and discussed. The 250 CPs each had 1–8 exons with 144 CPs (57.6%) having 2 exons. The intron length ranged from 66–3888 bp with 174 introns (54.0%) being 66–100 bp long. Except for 2 CPs on 2 contigs, 248 CPs were mapped onto 28 scaffolds with 136 genes (54.4%) restricted to 5 scaffolds. A total of 107 CPs were clustered and located at 27 loci. The CPR family had the conserved motif GSYSLVEPDGTVRTV. The RR-1 subfamily had an additional 21 amino acid (aa) motifs with the YVADENGF sequence that is common in insects. The RR-2 subfamily had an additional 50 aa motif with 2 additional regions RDGDVVKG and G-x(3)-VV. A comparison with 115 orthologous counterparts of An. gambiae CPs suggested purifying selection for all of these genes. This study provides basic information useful for further studies on biological functions of An. sinensis CPs as well as for comparative genomics of insect CPs. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Sound signal excited by the interaction of laser and water has high range resolution and Marine anti-interference ability, it has broad application prospects in the area of underwater target detection. This paper deals with the problem of underwater target detection, the mechanism of laser-induced vaporization is studied, the experiment of laser vaporization is designed in this paper. The research results can provide reference for underwater target detection.

Objective To explore the role of proto-oncogene Pim-1 in the proliferation and migration of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells. Methods Pim-1 expressions in NPC cell lines CNE1, CNE1-GL, CNE-2Z and C666-1 were examined by RT-PCR, western blotting and immunoflucesence, respectively. After CNE1, CNE1-GL and C666-1 cells were treated with different concentrations of Pim-1 special inhibitor, quercetagetin, the cell viability, colony formation rate and migration ability were analyzed. Results Pim-1 expression was negative in well-differentiated CNE1 cells, whereas expressed weakly positive in poor-differentiated CNE-2Z cells and strongly positive in undifferentiated C666-1 cells. Interestingly, CNE1-GL cells that derived from CNE1 transfected with an Epstein Barr virus latent membrane protein-1 over-expression plasmid displayed stronger expression of Pim-1. Treatment of CNE1-GL and C666-1 cells with quercetagetin significantly decreased the cell viability, colony formation rate and migration ability but not the CNE1 cells. Conclusions These findings suggest that Pim-1 overexpression contributes to NPC proliferation and migration, and targeting Pim-1 may be a potential treatment for anti-Pim-1-expressed NPCs.

The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Anopheles culicifacial species B was sequenced in this study. The length of the mitochondrial genome is 15 330 bp, which contains 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 tRNA genes, two rRNA genes, and a non-coding control region. The gene order and the gene composition are consistent with those previously reported for other mosquito species. The initiation codon of the PCGs complies with the ATN rule except for COI using TCG and ND5 using GTG as a start codon, and the termination codon is TAA or imcomplete, an only T. The total base composition is 40.4% A, 38.1% T, 12.4% C, and 9.1% G. The phylogenetic tree based on the sequences of 13 protein-coding genes showed that these species were classified into two clades, corresponding to the subgenus Cellia and subgenus Nyssorhynchus. An. culicifacies species B of Myzomyia Series was clustered with An. gambiae of Pyretophorus Series with a high bootstrap value of 100%. The complete mitogenome data can provide a basis for molecular identification and phylogenetic studies of mosquito species.

In the Morris Water Maze test, high-peak-power pulsed microwave (MW)-exposed rats displayed some learning and memory behavior dysfunctions, and their escape time and swimming distance to the submerged platform were longer than those of the sham-exposed rats. To understand the molecular mechanism involved, the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the Western-blotting technique were used for investigating the mRNA and protein expression patterns of the histamine H3 receptor (H3R) in rat hippocampus. High-peak-power pulsed microwave-exposure did not remarkably lead to the change in expression of H3R mRNA in rat hippocampi; however, it promoted the up-regulatory expression of the H3R protein, which was possibly triggered through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. Therefore, further investigation of the molecular mechanism of the MW effects on the learning and memory behaviors is required.

Background Anopheles sinensis is the major malaria vector in China and Southeast Asia. Vector control is one of the most effective measures to prevent malaria transmission. However, there is little transcriptome information available for the malaria vector. To better understand the biological basis of malaria transmission and to develop novel and effective means of vector control, there is a need to build a transcriptome dataset for functional genomics analysis by large-scale RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). Methods To provide a more comprehensive and complete transcriptome of An. sinensis, eggs, larvae, pupae, male adults and female adults RNA were pooled together for cDNA preparation, sequenced using the Illumina paired-end sequencing technology and assembled into unigenes. These unigenes were then analyzed in their genome mapping, functional annotation, homology, codon usage bias and simple sequence repeats (SSRs). Results Approximately 51.6 million clean reads were obtained, trimmed, and assembled into 38,504 unigenes with an average length of 571 bp, an N50 of 711 bp, and an average GC content 51.26%. Among them, 98.4% of unigenes could be mapped onto the reference genome, and 69% of unigenes could be annotated with known biological functions. Homology analysis identified certain numbers of An. sinensis unigenes that showed homology or being putative 1:1 orthologues with genomes of other Dipteran species. Codon usage bias was analyzed and 1,904 SSRs were detected, which will provide effective molecular markers for the population genetics of this species. Conclusions Our data and analysis provide the most comprehensive transcriptomic resource and characteristics currently available for An. sinensis, and will facilitate genetic, genomic studies, and further vector control of An. sinensis.

AIM: To investigate the inhibitory role of toxicarioside A on the gastric cancer cell line human gastric cancer cell line (SGC-7901) and determine the underlying molecular mechanism. METHODS: After SGC-7901 cells were treated with toxicarioside A at various concentrations (0.5, 1.5, 4.5, 9.0 μg/mL) for 24 h or 48 h, cell viability was determined by 3-(4,5-dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide assay, and the motility and invasion of tumor cells were assessed by the Transwell chamber assay. Immunofluorescence staining, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting were performed to detect the expression of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and fibroblast growth factor receptor-1 (FGFR1), and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) activation was examined by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. RESULTS: The results showed that toxicarioside A was capable of reducing cell viability, inhibiting cell growth, and suppressing cell migration and invasion activities in a time- and dose-dependent manner in SGC-7901 cells. Further analysis revealed that not only the expression of bFGF and its high-affinity receptor FGFR1 but also the NF-κB-DNA binding activity were effectively blocked by toxicarioside A in a dose-dependent manner compared with the control group (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). Interestingly, application of the NF-κB specific inhibitor, pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate (PDTC), to SGC-7901 cells significantly potentized the toxicarioside A-induced down-regulation of bFGF compared with the control group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that toxicarioside A has an anti-gastric cancer activity and this effect may be achieved partly through down-regulation of NF-κB and bFGF/FGFR1 signaling.

Delia antiqua is a major underground agricultural pest widely distributed in Asia, Europe and North America. In this study, we sequenced and annotated the complete mitochondrial genome of this species, which is the first report of complete mitochondrial genome in the family Anthomyiidae. This genome is a double-stranded circular molecule with a length of 16,141 bp and an A+T content of 78.5%. It contains 37 genes (13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNAs and 2 rRNAs) and a non-coding A+T rich region or control region. The mitochondrial genome of Delia antiqua presents a clear bias in nucleotide composition with a positive AT-skew and a negative GC-skew. All of the 13 protein-coding genes use ATN as an initiation codon except for the COI gene that starts with ATCA. Most protein-coding genes have complete termination codons but COII and ND5 that have the incomplete termination codon T. This bias is reflected in both codon usage and amino acid composition. The protein-coding genes in the D. antiqua mitochondrial genome prefer to use the codon UUA (Leu). All of the tRNAs have the typical clover-leaf structure, except for tRNA Ser(AGN) that does not contain the dihydrouridine (DHU) arm like in many other insects. There are 7 mismatches with U-U in the tRNAs. The location and structure of the two rRNAs are conservative and stable when compared with other insects. The control region between 12S rRNA and tRNA Ile has the highest A+T content of 93.7% in the D. antiqua mitochondrial genome. The control region includes three kinds of special regions, two highly conserved poly-T stretches, a (TA)n stretch and several G(A)nT structures considered important elements related to replication and transcription. The nucleotide sequences of 13 protein-coding genes are used to construct the phylogenetics of 26 representative Dipteran species. Both maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference analyses suggest a closer relationship of D. antiqua in Anthomyiidae with Calliphoridae, Calliphoridae is a paraphyly, and both Oestroidea and Muscoidea are polyphyletic.

Background Overexpression of ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme 2C (UBE2C) has been detected in many types of human cancers, and is correlated with tumor malignancy. However, the role of UBE2C in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is unclear. In this study, we investigated the role of aberrant UBE2C expression in the progression of human NPC. Methods Immunohistochemical analysis was performed to detect UBE2C protein in clinical samples of NPC and benign nasopharyngeal tissues, and the association of UBE2C expression with patient clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed. UBEC2 expression profiles were evaluated in cell lines representing varying differentiated stages of NPC and immortalized nasopharyngeal epithelia NP-69 cells using quantitative RT-PCR, western blotting and fluorescent staining. Furthermore, UBE2C was knocked down using RNA interference in these cell lines and proliferation and cell cycle distribution was investigated. Results Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that UBE2C protein expression levels were higher in NPC tissues than in benign nasopharyngeal tissues (PP=0.017), lymph node metastasis (P=0.016) and distant metastasis (P=0.015) in NPC patients. In vitro experiments demonstrated that UBE2C expression levels were inversely correlated with the degree of differentiation of NPC cell lines, whereas UBE2C displayed low level of expression in NP-69 cells. Knockdown of UBE2C led to significant arrest at the S and G2/M phases of the cell cycle, and decreased cell proliferation was observed in poorly-differentiated CNE2Z NPC cells and undifferentiated C666-1 cells, but not in well-differentiated CNE1 and immortalized NP-69 cells. Conclusions Our findings suggest that high expression of UBE2C in human NPC is closely related to tumor malignancy, and may be a potential marker for NPC progression.