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This is an article in the field of mineral materials. The tourmaline powder was modified with silane coupling agent KH-171, and the process conditions were optimized with the parameters of contact angle and turbidity of the modified product in liquid paraffin. The test results showed that the contact angle of the resulting modified tourmaline reached 133 ℃ when reacted at 60 ℃ for 2 h at a system pH value of 9, a dosage of modifier KH-171 of 2 mL, and an alcohol-to-water ratio of 1∶5, showing excellent hydrophobic properties. The modified tourmaline was characterized by IR, SEM and XRD. The results showed that the organic functional groups with carbon-carbon double bonds were successfully connected to the surface of tourmaline without changing the original crystal structure, but the agglomeration of tourmaline reduced effectively and showed better dispersion performance.

Abstract Background Intrauterine adhesion (IUA) is one of the most severe causes of infertility in women of childbearing age with injured endometrium secondary to uterine performance. Stem cell therapy is effective in treating damaged endometrium. The current reports mainly focus on the therapeutic effects of stem cells through paracrine or transdifferentiation, respectively. This study investigates whether paracrine or transdifferentiation occurs preferentially in treating IUA. Methods Human amniotic mesenchymal stem cells (hAMSCs) and transformed human endometrial stromal cells (THESCs) induced by transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β1) were co-cultured in vitro. The mRNA and protein expression levels of Fibronectin (FN), Collagen I, Cytokeratin19 (CK19), E-cadherin (E-cad) and Vimentin were detected by Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), Western blotting (WB) and Immunohistochemical staining (IHC). The Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were used to establish the IUA model. hAMSCs, hAMSCs-conditional medium (hAMSCs-CM), and GFP-labeled hAMSCs were injected into intrauterine, respectively. The fibrotic area of the endometrium was evaluated by Masson staining. The number of endometrium glands was detected by hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). GFP-labeled hAMSCs were traced by immunofluorescence (IF). hAMSCs, combined with PPCNg (hAMSCs/PPCNg), were injected into the vagina, which was compared with intrauterine injection. Results qPCR and WB revealed that FN and Collagen I levels in IUA-THESCs decreased significantly after co-culturing with hAMSCs. Moreover, CK19, E-cad, and Vimentin expressions in hAMSCs showed no significant difference after co-culture for 2 days. 6 days after co-culture, CK19, E-cad and Vimentin expressions in hAMSCs were significantly changed. Histological assays showed increased endometrial glands and a remarkable decrease in the fibrotic area in the hAMSCs and hAMSCs-CM groups. However, these changes were not statistically different between the two groups. In vivo, fluorescence imaging revealed that GFP-hAMSCs were localized in the endometrial stroma and gradually underwent apoptosis. The effect of hAMSCs by vaginal injection was comparable to that by intrauterine injection assessed by H&E staining, MASSON staining and IHC. Conclusions Our data demonstrated that hAMSCs promoted endometrial repair via paracrine, preferentially than transdifferentiation.

This is an article in the field of mineral processing engineering. Tourmaline has been widely used for its spontaneous polarity, pyroelectric effect, far-infrared radiation and negative-ion release effect. In order to increase its stability in water-based coatings and improve its performance in water-based coatings, in this work, the surface modification of tourmaline with carboxylated nanolocellulose (C-CNF) was studied and optimized. The test results show that the performance of modified tourmaline was optimal while the addition of C-CNF was 2 g, solid-to-liquid ratio 1:5, and reacted 2h at 50 ℃, its turbidity reached 1361 ntu, contact angle to 53o. It was found that C-CNF was successfully grafted to the tourmaline surface by means of characterization of the modified tourmaline, and the dispersion of the modified tourmaline in the aqueous medium was better improved.

The quality of Aztec apples varies significantly at different maturity stages, which can have a significant impact on postharvest storage and sales efficiency. This study focused on Aztec apples at four different maturity stages in Suqian, Jiangsu Province. Firstly, the variations in color (L*, a*, b* values), firmness (FI), soluble solid content (SSC), titratable acidity (TA), moisture content (MC) and dry matter content (DMC) were analyzed using principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA). Simultaneously, visible and near-infrared (Vis-NIR) and near-infrared (NIR) spectral techniques, along with the successive projections algorithm (SPA), competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) and uninformative variable elimination (UVE) algorithms were employed for selecting relevant characteristic variables. Subsequently, partial least squares (PLS) and support vector machine (SVM) were utilized to establish quality prediction models for Aztec apples. The results revealed that SSC, a*, L* and b* had a significant impact on the categorization of Aztec apples at different maturity stages. Notably, wavelength bands in the ranges of 510 to 680 nm, 1170 to 1270 nm and 2300 nm exhibited strong correlations with characteristic attributes. The SPA-PLS and SPA-SVM models demonstrated remarkable performance in predicting the L*, b* and a* values of Aztec apples at different maturity stages, with all relative percent deviation (RPD) values exceeding 3.00. The CARS-PLS model effectively predicted SSC with an RPD of 3.19. However, the prediction accuracy of SPA-PLS models for FI, TA, MC and DMC was comparatively lower, with RPD values of 2.27, 2.21, 2.32 and 2.42, respectively. The results demonstrated that Vis-NIR and NIR spectroscopy methods could predict the quality of Aztec apples at different maturity stages, providing valuable technical references for the harvest management and quality control of Aztec apples.

BackgroundWith the remarkable effect of controlling the increase in drug costs by the first batch of National Key Monitoring and Rational Use Drugs (first NKMRUDs), the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China releases the second NKMRUDs to further strengthen the reasonable use of drugs. Unfortunately, the second NKMRUDs include some drugs of National Volume-based Procurement and National Essential Medicines, which challenges the management of pharmaceutical affairs on the three kinds of drugs.ObjectiveThe main objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of the second NKMRUDs and explore their monitoring indicators.MethodsAn adapted WHO methodology for point prevalence surveys was conducted for the second NKMRUDs. For the monitoring indicators, we sought to explore whether the defined daily dose (DDD) and days of therapy (DOT) can be suitable for the second NKMRUDs through comparing differences between DDD and DOT with the prescribed daily dose (PDD).ResultsAmong the 935 included patients, 29.20% of the patients received at least one of the second NKMRUDs. A total of 273 patients were administered with 487 times of the second NKMRUDs. Among them, 162 , 62 , and 49 patients were receiving one, two, and three or more agents, respectively. The most commonly prescribed second NKMRUDs were compound amino acids, budesonide, and ceftazidime. The total DDDs and DOTs of the second NKMRUDs were 3360.68 and 1819.80, respectively, with the PDDs of 1865.26. The deviations (80.17%) of DDDs from PDDs were significantly greater than those (−2.44%) of DOTs.ConclusionThe prevalence of the second NKMRUDs was obtained by using the adapted PPS methodology at a tertiary university hospital. The DOT indicator is found to more accurately reflect actual consumption than the DDD indicator for second NKMRUDs. It is recommended to use the DOT indicator to monitor second NKMRUDs.

Abstract Abnormal alternative splicing (AS) caused by alterations in spliceosomal factors is implicated in cancers. Standard models posit that splice site selection is mainly determined by early spliceosomal U1 and U2 snRNPs. Whether and how other mid/late-acting spliceosome components such as USP39 modulate tumorigenic splice site choice remains largely elusive. We observed that hepatocyte-specific overexpression of USP39 promoted hepatocarcinogenesis and potently regulated splice site selection in transgenic mice. In human liver cancer cells, USP39 promoted tumor proliferation in a spliceosome-dependent manner. USP39 depletion deregulated hundreds of AS events, including the oncogenic splice-switching of KANK2. Mechanistically, we developed a novel RBP-motif enrichment analysis and found that USP39 modulated exon inclusion/exclusion by interacting with SRSF6/HNRNPC in both humans and mice. Our data represented a paradigm for the control of splice site selection by mid/late-acting spliceosome proteins and their interacting RBPs. USP39 and possibly other mid/late-acting spliceosome proteins may represent potential prognostic biomarkers and targets for cancer therapy.

BackgroundBipolar disorder (BD) is a complex and serious psychiatric condition primarily characterized by bipolar depression, with the underlying genetic determinants yet to be elucidated. There is a substantial body of literature linking psychiatric disorders, including BD, to oxidative stress (OS). Consequently, this study aims to assess the relationship between BD and OS by identifying key hub genes implicated in OS pathways.MethodsWe acquired gene microarray data from GSE5392 through the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). Our approach encompassed differential expression analysis, weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), and Protein-Protein Interaction (PPI) Network analysis to pinpoint hub genes associated with BD. Subsequently, we utilized Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) to identify hub genes relevant to OS. To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of these hub genes, we performed receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis on both GSE5388 and GSE5389 datasets. Furthermore, we conducted a study involving ten BD patients and ten healthy controls (HCs) who met the special criteria, assessing the expression levels of these hub genes in their peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs).ResultsWe identified 411 down-regulated genes and 69 up-regulated genes for further scrutiny. Through WGCNA, we obtained 22 co-expression modules, with the sienna3 module displaying the strongest association with BD. By integrating differential analysis with genes linked to OS, we identified 44 common genes. Subsequent PPI Network and WGCNA analyses confirmed three hub genes as potential biomarkers for BD. Functional enrichment pathway analysis revealed their involvement in neuronal signal transduction, oxidative phosphorylation, and metabolic obstacle pathways. Using the Cytoscape plugin “ClueGo assay,” we determined that a majority of these targets regulate neuronal synaptic plasticity. ROC curve analysis underscored the excellent diagnostic value of these three hub genes. Quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (RT-qPCR) results indicated significant changes in the expression of these hub genes in the PBMCs of BD patients compared to HCs.ConclusionWe identified three hub genes (TAC1, MAP2K1, and MAP2K4) in BD associated with OS, potentially influencing the diagnosis and treatment of BD. Based on the GEO database, our study provides novel insights into the relationship between BD and OS, offering promising therapeutic targets.

Population aging represents a paramount medical and socio-demographic challenge globally. As living standards improve and medical technology advances, the elderly population experiences an increasing number of detected and treated pulmonary embolisms (PE). However, rescuing massive pulmonary embolism (MPE) in the elderly remains a difficult task. Conventional thrombolysis or surgical thrombolysis might be contraindicated, leading extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to emerge as a treatment modality for MPE in the elderly. Nevertheless, data are scarce regarding the use of ECMO as a standalone treatment for MPE. In this paper, we present the case of an 85-year-old patient with a prior cerebral infarction, who received a diagnosis of MPE in the main trunks of bilateral pulmonary arteries. Considering the patient's systemic condition, the Pulmonary Embolism Response Team (PERT) opted to administer VA-ECMO as the sole treatment approach. Remarkably, the patient achieved a favorable recovery outcome. Our case report contributes new evidence to the treatment of elderly individuals with MPE and highlights the potential of ECMO-only regimens for addressing such cases.

Abstract Background Ubiquitin‐conjugating enzyme E2S (UBE2S), an E2 enzyme, is associated with the development of various tumors and exerts oncogenic activities. UBE2S is overexpressed in tumors, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the key molecular mechanisms of UBE2S in HCC still need additional research. The aim of this study was to explore the role of UBE2S in HCC. Methods The expression levels of UBE2S in HCC tissues and cells were detected by western blot analysis, quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction analysis (qRT–PCR), and immunohistochemistry (IHC). A 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)‐2,5‐diphenyl‐2H‐tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, wound healing assay, colony formation assay transwell assay, and animal models were used to detect the proliferation and migration ability of HCC cells. Western blot analysis, qRT–PCR, immunofluorescence, small‐interfering RNA (siRNA), and plasmid transfection and coimmunoprecipitation (Co‐IP) assays were performed to detect the interaction among UBE2S, von Hippel–Lindau (VHL), hypoxia‐inducible factor 1‐alpha (HIF‐1α), Janus kinase‐2 (JAK2), and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3). Results In this study, we found that high UBE2S expression was associated with poor prognosis in HCC patients. In addition, UBE2S expression was upregulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. Knockdown of UBE2S inhibited the proliferation and migration of HCC cells in vitro and in vivo by directly interacting with VHL to downregulate the HIF‐1α and JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathways. Accordingly, overexpression of UBE2S significantly enhanced the proliferation and migration of HCC cells in vitro via VHL to upregulate HIF‐1α and JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathways. Furthermore, we found that downregulation of UBE2S expression enhanced the sensitivity of HCC cells to sorafenib in vivo and in vitro. Conclusion UBE2S enhances malignant properties via the VHL/HIF‐1α and VHL/JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathways and reduces sensitivity to sorafenib in HCC. The findings of this study may open a new approach for HCC diagnosis and provide a potential option for the treatment of HCC.

The TIFY gene family (formerly known as the zinc finger proteins expressed in inflorescence meristem (ZIM) family) not only functions in plant defense responses but also are widely involved in regulating plant growth and development. However, the identification and functional analysis of TIFY proteins remain unexplored in Orchidaceae. Here, we identified 19 putative TIFY genes in the Phalaenopsis aphrodite genome. The phylogenetic tree classified them into four subfamilies: 14 members from JAZ, 3 members from ZML, and 1 each from PPD and TIFY. Sequence analysis revealed that all Phalaenopsis TIFY proteins contained a TIFY domain. Exon–intron analysis showed that the intron number and length of Phalaenopsis TIFY genes varied, whereas the same subfamily and subgroup genes had similar exon or intron numbers and distributions. The most abundant cis-elements in the promoter regions of the 19 TIFY genes were associated with light responsiveness, followed by MeJA and ABA, indicating their potential regulation by light and phytohormones. The 13 candidate TIFY genes screened from the transcriptome data exhibited two types of expression trends, suggesting their different roles in cell proliferation and cell expansion of floral organ growth during Phalaenopsis flower opening. Overall, this study serves as a background for investigating the underlying roles of TIFY genes in floral organ growth in Phalaenopsis.

Abstract Cancer stem cells (CSCs) contribute to tumor initiation, progression, and recurrence in many types of cancer, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Epigenetic reprogramming of CSCs has emerged as a promising strategy for inducing the transition from malignancy to benignity. Ubiquitin-like with PHD and ring finger domains 1 (UHRF1) is required for DNA methylation inheritance. Here, we investigated the role and mechanism of UHRF1 in regulating CSC properties and evaluated the impact of UHRF1 targeting on HCC. Hepatocyte-specific Uhrf1 knockout (Uhrf1 HKO ) strongly suppressed tumor initiation and CSC self-renewal in both diethylnitrosamine (DEN)/CCl4-induced and Myc-transgenic HCC mouse models. Ablation of UHRF1 in human HCC cell lines yielded consistent phenotypes. Integrated RNA-seq and whole genome bisulfite sequencing revealed widespread hypomethylation induced by UHRF1 silencing epigenetically reprogrammed cancer cells toward differentiation and tumor suppression. Mechanistically, UHRF1 deficiency upregulated CEBPA and subsequently inhibited GLI1 and Hedgehog signaling. Administration of hinokitiol, a potential UHRF1 inhibitor, significantly reduced tumor growth and CSC phenotypes in mice with Myc-driven HCC. Of pathophysiological significance, the expression levels of UHRF1, GLI1, and key axis proteins consistently increased in the livers of mice and patients with HCC. These findings highlight the regulatory mechanism of UHRF1 in liver CSCs and have important implications for the development of therapeutic strategies for HCC.

Abstract Objective Depression and urinary incontinence (UI) are both troubling symptoms that severely impact quality of life. The aim of this study is to evaluate the association between UI (including UI types and severity) and depression among men. Population and methods The analyzed data was collected from the 2005–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data. A total of 16,694 male participants aged ≥ 20 years with complete information about depression and UI were included in this study. Logistic regression was performed to calculate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) to determine the association between depression and UI by adjusting for relevant covariables. Results The prevalence of depression was 10.91% among participants with UI. Urge UI was the main type of UI and accounts for 50.53% of all UI types. The adjusted ORs for the association between depression and UI were 2.69 (95%CI, 2.20–3.28). Compared with slight UI, the adjusted ORs were 2.28 (95% CI, 1.61–3.23) for moderate UI, 2.98 (95% CI, 1.54–5.74) for severe UI, and 3.85 (95% CI, 1.83–8.12) for very severe UI. Compared with no UI, the adjusted ORs were 4.46 (95% CI, 3.16–6.29) for mixed UI, 3.15 (95% CI, 2.06–4.82) for stress UI, and 2.43 (95% CI, 1.89–3.12) for urge UI. The subgroup analyses also showed similar correlation about depression and UI. Conclusion Among men, depression was positively associated with UI status, severity and types. For clinicians, it’s necessary to screen depression in patients with UI.

ABSTRACTObjective The prognosis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains poor although the basic and translational research has been highly productive in understanding the genetics and pathopoiesis of AML and a plethora of targeted therapies have been developed. Consequently, it is crucial to deepen the knowledge of molecular pathogenesis underlying AML for the advancement of new treatment options.Method A RSK gene family-related signature was constructed to investigate whether RSK gene family members were useful in predicting the prognosis of AML patients. The relationship between the RSK gene family-related signature and the infiltration of immune cells was further assessed using the CIBERSORT algorithm. The ‘oncoPredict’ package was used to analyze relationships between the RSK gene family-related signature and the sensitivity to drugs or small molecules.Results Patients were classified into two groups using the RSK gene family-related signature following the median risk score. Overall survival (OS) was significantly longer in patients with low-risk scores than that in patients with high-risk scores as showed by both training and validation datasets. Moreover, the signature was helpful in predicting 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year OS in training and validation datasets. In addition, it was identified that low-risk patients exhibited greater sensitivity to 20 drugs or small molecules and that high-risk patients had higher sensitivity to 38 drugs or small molecules.Conclusion RSK gene family members, particularly RPS6KA1 and RPS6KA4, may help to predict prognosis for AML patients. Furthermore, RPS6KA1 may serve as a novel drug target for AML.

Background Gardenia jasminoides is a species of Chinese medicinal plant, which has high medicinal and economic value and rich genetic diversity, but the study on its genetic diversity is far not enough. Methods In this study, one wild and one cultivated gardenia materials were resequenced using IlluminaHiSeq sequencing platform and the data were evaluated to understand the genomic characteristics of G. jasminoides. Results After data analysis, the results showed that clean data of 11.77G, Q30 reached 90.96%. The average comparison rate between the sample and reference genome was 96.08%, the average coverage depth was 15X, and the genome coverage was 85.93%. The SNPs of FD and YP1 were identified, and 3,087,176 and 3,241,416 SNPs were developed, respectively. In addition, SNP non-synonymous mutation, InDel mutation, SV mutation and CNV mutation were also detected between the sample and the reference genome, and KEGG, GO and COG database annotations were made for genes with DNA level variation. The structural gene variation in the biosynthetic pathway of crocin and gardenia, the main medicinal substance of G. jasminoides was further explored, which provided basic data for molecular breeding and genetic diversity of G. jasminoides in the future.

To explore the in vivo hypolipidemic effect of the compound composition of crataegus, ume, grape skin, wolfberry and mulberry. There were 50 SPF-grade healthy male SD rats, 10 rats were given maintenance feed as a blank control group, and 40 rats were given model feed as a model group. After the model group was given the model feed for 2 weeks, the 40 animals in the model group were randomly divided into 4 groups according to the TC level, namely high, medium and low dose groups (1.5, 0.5, 0.25g/kg·BW) and the model control group. After grouping, the three dose groups were given the test sample orally at 10mL/kg·BW every day, and the blank control group and the model control group were given the same volume of distilled water at the same time. After continuous intragastric administration for 30 days, serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were measured. The liver coefficient, hepatic lipase (HL), and lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity levels were measured, and the degree of hepatic steatosis was observed by HE staining. The results showed that compared with the model control group, the levels of serum TC, TG and LDL-C in the high-dose and middle-dose groups significantly decreased (P

Abstract Infraslow activity (ISA) is a biomarker that has recently become of interest in the characterization of seizure recordings. Recent data from a small number of studies have suggested that the epileptogenic zone may be identified by the presence of ISA. Investigation of low frequency activity in clinical seizure recordings, however, has been hampered by technical limitations. EEG systems necessarily include a high-pass filter early in the measurement chain to remove large artifactual drifts that can saturate recording elements such as the amplifier. This filter, unfortunately, attenuates legitimately seizure-related low frequencies, making ISA difficult to study in clinical EEG recordings. In this study, we present a deconvolution-based digital inverse filter that allows recovery of attenuated low frequency activity in intracranial recordings of temporal lobe epilepsy patients. First, we show that the unit impulse response (UIR) of an EEG system can be characterized by differentiation of the system’s step response. As proof of method, we present several examples that show that the low frequency component of a high-pass filtered signal can be restored by deconvolution with the UIR. We then demonstrate that this method can be applied to biologically relevant signals including clinical EEG recordings obtained from seizure patients. Finally, we discuss how this method can be applied to study ISA to identify and assess the seizure onset zone.

Oxalis triangularis ‘Purpurea’ has significant ornamental value in landscaping. There is a critical necessity to elucidate the gene functions of O. triangularis ‘Purpurea’ and dissect the molecular mechanisms governing key ornamental traits. However, a reliable genetic transformation method remains elusive. In this study, our investigation revealed that various transformation parameters, including recipient material (petioles), pre-culture time (2–5 days), acetosyringone (AS) concentration (100–400 μM), Agrobacterium concentrations (OD600 = 0.4–1.0), infection time (5–20 min), and co-culture time (2–5 days), significantly impacted the stable genetic transformation in O. triangular ‘Purpurea’. Notably, the highest genetic transformation rate was achieved from the leaf discs pre-cultured for 3 days, treated with 200 μM AS infected with Agrobacterium for 11 min at OD600 of 0.6, and subsequently co-cultured for 3 days. This treatment resulted in a genetic transformation efficiency of 9.88%, and it only took 79 days to produce transgenic plants. Our transformation protocol offers advantages of speed, efficiency, and simplicity, which will greatly facilitate genetic transformation for O. triangular ‘Purpurea’ and gene function studies.

Orchids are horticultural plants with significant ornamental and economic value. Increasing market circulation and rising trade in orchids is forcing breeders to develop varieties with unique characteristics, including flower color, morphology, and resistance using a range of approaches, including traditional and molecular breeding. Advances in high-throughput technologies have generated extensive data sets with greater sequencing depths and broader coverage, providing the potential for discovering new genes/pathways that give rise to key traits. Several attempts have been made to use emerging molecular and omics methods to accelerate the breeding process in certain of the commercially valuable orchids. This review consolidates current approaches and achievements in orchid breeding and discusses their future applications for improving the resistance, ornamental, and other valuable characteristics of these plants.

The wood sorrel family, Oxalidaceae, is mainly composed of annual or perennial herbs, a few shrubs, and trees distributed from temperate to tropical zones. Members of Oxalidaceae are of high medicinal, ornamental, and economic value. Despite the rich diversity and value of Oxalidaceae, few molecular markers or plastomes are available for phylogenetic analysis of the family. Here, we reported four new whole plastomes of Oxalidaceae and compared them with plastomes of three species in the family, as well as the plastome of Rourea microphylla in the closely related family Connaraceae. The eight plastomes ranged in length from 150,673 bp (Biophytum sensitivum) to 156,609 bp (R. microphylla). Genome annotations revealed a total of 129–131 genes, including 83–84 protein-coding genes, eight rRNA genes, 37 tRNA genes, and two to three pseudogenes. Comparative analyses showed that the plastomes of these species have minor variations at the gene level. The smaller plastomes of herbs B. sensitivum and three Oxalis species are associated with variations in IR region sizes, intergenic region variation, and gene or intron loss. We identified sequences with high variation that may serve as molecular markers in taxonomic studies of Oxalidaceae. The phylogenetic trees of selected superrosid representatives based on 76 protein-coding genes corroborated the Oxalidaceae position in Oxalidales and supported it as a sister to Connaraceae. Our research also supported the monophyly of the COM (Celastrales, Oxalidales, and Malpighiales) clade.

ObjectiveThis study aims to identify dietary branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) consumption trajectories in Chinese adults and to evaluate their association with the risk of hyperuricemia (HU).MethodsCohort data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey 1997–2009 were adopted in this research. A total of 6,810 participants aged ≥18 years were included in this study. Participants were designated into four subgroups on basis of the trajectories of dietary BCAA consumption. Cox proportional hazards models were performed to discuss the relationships between varied trajectories and the risk of HU after adjusting potential confounders. The intermediary effect of differential blood indexes between the trajectories and the risk of HU was explored with mediation analysis.ResultsFour distinct trajectory groups of dietary BCAA consumption were identified. Compared with the low stable trajectory group, high to low trajectory group was greatly related to an increased risk of HU (HR 1.35 (95% CI 1.03 to 1.79)) with modification for covariates. Total cholesterol (TC), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), fasting blood glucose (FBG), and triglyceride (TG) partially regulated trajectories and HU.ConclusionGradually decreasing dietary BCAA intake increased the risk of HU, which is, at least, partially mediated by TC, HbA1c, FBG, and TG levels.

The steel–concrete composite truss adopts a new type of steel-concrete composite joint with high rigidity and load-carrying capacity. In order to more conveniently and clearly grasp the working mechanism of Perfobond Leiste (PBL) shear keys in the core area of new composite structures such as steel–concrete composite trusses, the lack of strong theoretical support for the theoretical formula of load–slip relationships in the entire loading process of single PBL shear keys is solved. By proposing a straight–curved–straight three-stage simplified load–slip curve with respect to the PBL shear key, the stress process of the PBL shear key is divided into three stages—the elastic stage, plastic stage, and strengthening stage—based on the compressive yield and failure critical point of tenon concrete in the shear key. With reference to the calculation method of the bearing capacity of the order pile under horizontal loads and by calculating the shear stiffness of the shear key, a theoretical formula suitable for separating the load–slip relationship of a single PBL shear key in the entire loading process of the ear plate composite joint is proposed. The results show that, in the elastic section, the slope of the curve is related to the concrete reaction coefficient and the material parameters of the penetrating steel bar; moreover, in the strengthened section, the coefficient is related to the shear modulus of the penetrating steel bar, and a more uniform length distribution of the penetrating steel bar between the two joint plates will improve the initial stiffness of the PBL shear key to a certain extent. The results of the proposed method are in good agreement with the finite element results and experimental values. This research study’s results can provide a convenient design method for the design of the internal PBL shear keys of new composite structure joints, promoting the promotion and application of new composite structures and advancing the development of the engineering field.

In order to investigate the impact of fatigue damage on the ultimate load capacity of criticality cells in steel–concrete composite segments and to address the complex design challenges associated with bridge steel–concrete composite segments in practical engineering, this study designs two scaled criticality cell specimens with a scale ratio of 1:2 and performs ultimate load capacity tests after fatigue cyclic loading. By analyzing the stress distribution of each component and the force transmission ratio and combining the results from finite element model calculations, this study introduces the degree of structural fatigue damage and proposes a predictive model for the ultimate load capacity of steel–concrete composite segment criticality cells that is easy to apply. This model is compared with the finite element calculation results and experimental values, and the results are found to be in good agreement. Additionally, the number of shear connection members in the model is optimized based on the calculation results. The research findings indicate that the main failure mode of criticality cells is inclined compression failure. The strength of each part decreases in the following order: steel–concrete composite segment, steel structure segment, and concrete segment. Furthermore, fatigue damage has a significant impact on criticality cells. The optimized model exhibits similar stress performance and force transmission ratio to the original model and provides a reference for the design of practical engineering.

ABSTRACT The extracellular substrate-binding proteins (SBPs) of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) importers tend to be expressed in excess relative to their cognate translocators, but how the stoichiometry of ABC transporters is controlled remains unclear. Here, we elucidated a mechanism contributing to differential gene expression in operons encoding ABC importers by employing cellulolytic Clostridia species, specifically Ruminiclostridium cellulolyticum. We found that there were usually stem-loop structures downstream of SBP genes, which could prematurely terminate the transcription of ABC importers and were putative internal intrinsic terminators, resulting in high transcript levels of upstream SBP genes and low transcript levels of downstream cognate translocator genes. This was determined by their termination efficiencies. Internal terminators had a lower U content in their 3′ U-rich tracts and longer GC-rich stems, which distinguishes them from canonical terminators and potentially endows them with special termination efficiencies. The pairing of U-rich tracts and the formation of unpaired regions in these internal terminators contributed to their folding energies, affecting the stability of their upstream SBP transcripts. Our findings revealed a strategy of internal transcriptional terminators controlling in vivo stoichiometry of their flanking transcripts. IMPORTANCE Operons encoding protein complexes or metabolic pathways usually require fine-tuned gene expression ratios to create and maintain the appropriate stoichiometry for biological functions. In this study, a strategy for controlling differential expression of genes in an operon was proposed by utilizing ABC importers from Ruminiclostridium cellulolyticum. We found that a stem-loop structure is introduced into the intergenic regions of operons encoding ABC importers as the putative internal terminator, which results in the premature termination of transcription. Consequently, the stoichiometric ratio of genes flanking terminators is precisely determined by their termination efficiencies and folding energies at the transcriptional level. Thus, it can be utilized as a promising synthetic biology tool to control the differential expression of genes in an operon.

Abstract Background The mechanism of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy remains poorly understood. Seizure induced cardiac arrhythmia, central and obstructive apneas have been proposed as possible causes of death. Here we report a unique case of seizure related sudden unexpected death in a patient whose airway was fully protected by intubation and mechanic ventilation in the absence of fatal cardiac arrhythmia. Case presentation A 70-year-old woman was undergoing mechanical ventilation and video-electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring following two convulsive seizures with ictal hypoventilation and hypoxemia. Several hours after intubation, she suffered another generalized tonic clonic seizure lasted for 3 min and developed postictal generalized EEG suppression in the presence of stable vital signs with SpO2 > 90%. EEG suppression persisted throughout the postictal phase. There was a significant fluctuation of systolic blood pressure between 50 and 180 mmHg with several bouts of hypotension

Background Members of the plant-specific YABBY gene family are thought to play an important role in the development of leaf, flower, and fruit. The YABBY genes have been characterized and regarded as vital contributors to fruit development in Arabidopsis thaliana and tomato, in contrast to that in the important tropical economic fruit star fruit (Averrhoa carambola), even though its genome is available. Methods In the present study, a total of eight YABBY family genes (named from AcYABBY1 to AcYABBY8) were identified from the genome of star fruit, and their phylogenetic relationships, functional domains and motif compositions, physicochemical properties, chromosome locations, gene structures, protomer elements, collinear analysis, selective pressure, and expression profiles were further analyzed. Results Eight AcYABBY genes (AcYABBYs) were clustered into five clades and were distributed on five chromosomes, and all of them had undergone negative selection. Tandem and fragment duplications rather than WGD contributed to YABBY gene number in the star fruit. Expression profiles of AcYABBYs from different organs and developmental stages of fleshy fruit indicated that AcYABBY4 may play a specific role in regulating fruit size. These results emphasize the need for further studies on the functions of AcYABBYs in fruit development.

To get a better electromagnetic performance of an axial flux permanent magnet brushless DC motor (AFPMBLDC), an AFPMBLDC with arc-shaped magnets and its multi-objective optimization design are researched. Firstly, the main design parameters of the AFPMBLDC are proposed, and the initial designs are carried out according to the given requirements. Furthermore, the pole arc coefficient, permanent magnet thickness, permanent magnet arc radius, and air-gap length are selected as optimization factors. Then, an orthogonal experiment table is established, in which the flux density, no-load back EMF, harmonic distortion rate, and output torque ripple are selected as optimization targets. The Taguchi optimization method is adopted to optimize the performance indexes and the optimal parameters are obtained. Finally, the optimized model is constructed, and some simulations are carried out to verify the optimal design. The research results have shown that the air-gap flux density of the optimized AFPMBLDC is reduced to 31.8%, the total harmonic distortion rate of no-load back EMF is less than 7.5%, and the torque ripple is reduced to 4.3%.

To improve electromagnetic performance, an axial-flux permanent magnet brushless DC motor (AFPMBLDCM) with unequal-thickness arc permanent magnets is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the structure and magnetic circuit of the AFPMBLDCM with unequal-thickness arc permanent magnets were designed. Then, the mathematical models and design method of the main parameters were derived. According to the rated power and rated speed, the main parameters were further designed, and the analytical model was established by using Maxwell 3D. The air-gap flux density, back electromotive force (EMF) and torque under no-load and load conditions were calculated and analyzed to verify the validity of the model and design. Finally, based on a parameter scanning optimization method, the effects of the permanent magnet thickness, pole arc coefficient and permanent magnet radius on cogging torque were analyzed. The optimized parameters of the AFPMBLDCM with unequal-thickness arc permanent magnets were obtained. The results show that the sinusoidal degree of the air-gap magnetic field is improved, and the maximum torque ripple of the AFPMBLDCM is reduced to 2.92%.

In this work, low-intensity ultrasonication (58.3 and 93.6 W/L) was performed at lag, logarithmic and stationary growth phases of Lactobacillus plantarum in apple juice fermentation, separately. Microbial responses to sonication, including microbial growth, profiles of organic acids profile, amino acids, phenolics, and antioxidant capacity, were examined. The results revealed that obvious responses were made by Lactobacillus plantarum to ultrasonication at lag and logarithmic phases, whereas sonication at stationary phase had a negligible impact. Sonication at lag and logarithmic phases promoted microbial growth and intensified biotransformation of malic acid to lactic acid. For example, after sonication at lag phase for 0.5 h, microbial count and lactic acid content in the ultrasound-treated samples at 58.3 W/L reached 7.91 ± 0.01 Log CFU/mL and 133.70 ± 7.39 mg/L, which were significantly higher than that in the non-sonicated samples. However, the ultrasonic effect on microbial growth and metabolism of organic acids attenuated with fermentation. Moreover, ultrasonication at lag and logarithmic phases had complex influences on the metabolism of apple phenolics such as chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, procyanidin B2, catechin and gallic acid. Ultrasound could positively affect the hydrolysis of chlorogenic acid to caffeic acid, the transformation of procyanidin B2 and decarboxylation of gallic acid. The metabolism of organic acids and free amino acids in the sonicated samples was statistically correlated with phenolic metabolism, implying that ultrasound may benefit phenolic derivation by improving the microbial metabolism of organic acids and amino acids.

Objective: To assess the seizure outcomes of stereotactic laser amygdalohippocampectomy (SLAH) in consecutive patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (mTLE) in a single center and identify scalp EEG and imaging factors in the presurgical evaluation that correlate with post-surgical seizure recurrence.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical and EEG records of 30 patients with drug-resistant mTLE who underwent SLAH and had at least 1 year of follow-up. Surgical outcomes were classified using the Engel scale. Univariate hazard ratios were used to evaluate the risk factors associated with seizure recurrence after SLAH.Results: The overall Engel class I outcome after SLAH was 13/30 (43%), with a mean postoperative follow-up of 48.9 ± 17.6 months. Scalp EEG findings of interictal regional slow activity (IRSA) on the side of surgery (HR = 4.05, p = 0.005) and non-lateralizing or contra-lateralizing seizure onset (HR = 4.31, p = 0.006) were negatively correlated with postsurgical seizure freedom. Scalp EEG with either one of the above features strongly predicted seizure recurrence after surgery (HR = 7.13, p < 0.001) with 100% sensitivity and 71% specificity.Significance: Understanding the factors associated with good or poor surgical outcomes can help choose the best candidates for SLAH. Of the variables assessed, scalp EEG findings were the most clearly associated with seizure outcomes after SLAH.

Abstract Background Efficient biotechnological conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to valuable products, such as transportation biofuels, is ecologically attractive, yet requires substantially improved mechanistic understanding and optimization to become economically feasible. Cellulolytic clostridia, such as Ruminiclostridium papyrosolvens (previously Clostridium papyrosolvens), produce a wide variety of carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) including extracellular multienzyme complexes—cellulosomes with different specificities for enhanced cellulosic biomass degradation. Identification of the secretory components, especially CAZymes, during bacterial growth on lignocellulose and their influence on bacterial catalytic capabilities provide insight into construction of potent cellulase systems of cell factories tuned or optimized for the targeted substrate by matching the type and abundance of enzymes and corresponding transporters. Results In this study, we firstly predicted a total of 174 putative CAZymes from the genome of R. papyrosolvens, including 74 cellulosomal components. To explore profile of secreted proteins involved in lignocellulose degradation, we compared the secretomes of R. papyrosolvens grown on different substrates using label-free quantitative proteomics. CAZymes, extracellular solute-binding proteins (SBPs) of transport systems and proteins involved in spore formation were enriched in the secretome of corn stover for lignocellulose degradation. Furthermore, compared with free CAZymes, complex CAZymes (cellulosomal components) had larger fluctuations in variety and abundance of enzymes among four carbon sources. In particular, cellulosomal proteins encoded by the cip-cel operon and the xyl-doc gene cluster had the highest abundance with corn stover as substrate. Analysis of differential expression of CAZymes revealed a substrate-dependent secretion pattern of CAZymes, which was consistent with their catalytic activity from each secretome determined on different cellulosic substrates. The results suggest that the expression of CAZymes is regulated by the type of substrate in the growth medium. Conclusions In the present study, our results demonstrated the complexity of the lignocellulose degradation systems of R. papyrosolvens and showed the potency of its biomass degradation activity. Differential proteomic analyses and activity assays of CAZymes secreted by R. papyrosolvens suggested a distinct environment-sensing strategy for cellulose utilization in which R. papyrosolvens modulated the composition of the CAZymes, especially cellulosome, according to the degradation state of its natural substrate.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been practiced by millions of people over two thousand years in China and surrounding countries like Japan and Korea. It is still widely accepted as a formal health care practice in these countries. The large amount of patients and long history of application helped TCM to accumulate significant medical knowledge both in practice and in theory. Although active in daily practices, the missing of modern scientific technology and analysis methods significantly limited TCM’s utilization and improvement. Historically, the TCM diagnosis is restricted by the methods a TCM doctor can use when modern diagnosing technologies like microscope and X ray were not available. As the result, TCM doctors have to build their diagnosis theory on the human detectable symptoms like tongue textures and pulse patterns. Although this historical choice gives TCM diagnosis significant advantages in cost and patient comfort over modern medical diagnosis methods, the subjective sign and symptom descriptions used in TCM diagnosis can cause many ambiguity and accuracy problems in rigorous medical researches. It also makes the TCM clinical data difficult to store, retrieve, and analyze in the modern medical information systems. In this article, we proposed the Macrocura TCM diagnosis assistant system 1 with standard TCM symptom code to regulate the TCM diagnosis data in clinical practices. Through the system, we try to promote the use of standard symptom descriptions to define the TCM clinical data and demonstrate how modern information technology and machine learning algorithms can be used to support the study and research of TCM diagnosis in primary care practices.

Neurological dysfunction has been noted in up to 36% of patients hospitalized with COVID-19, and a variety of mechanisms of neurological injury are possible. Here we report the rapid development of PRES and acute seizures in a patient with COVID-19 infection and sickle cell disease. The combination of COVID and sickle cell disease may raise the risk of PRES and could contribute to the higher mortality rate of COVID in patients with sickle cell disease.

Introduction: NPRL3 gene mutations cause autosomal dominant familial focal epilepsy of variable foci (FFEVF) and is characterized by focal epilepsy arising from different brain regions including temporal, frontal, parietal and occipital lobes. About 50% of patients with NPRL3 related epilepsy are resistant to medical treatment. Method: We present a case of 27 years old man with NPRL3 related focal drug-resistant epilepsy. Stereotactic EEG showed two independent seizure foci, namely, left hippocampus and left orbitofrontal cortices. He underwent laser interstitial thermal therapy for ablating both foci in the same procedure that led to seizure cessation. Conclusion: laser interstitial thermal therapy can be an effective treatment for drug resistant NPRL3 related focal epilepsy with better tolerance and less morbidity as compared to open surgical resection, particularly in those with multiple seizure foci.

To improve the order fulfillment throughput and space utilization in the robotic mobile fulfillment system (RMFS), the research developed two design aspects: the layout design and the warehouse structural parameter configuration. Based on the semiopen queue network theory, we built the queue network model to estimate the performance of RMFS. A scheme was proposed to move the picking stations inside the storage area, and seven layout scenes were designed according to the location arrangement of stations and storage area. The performance estimation and parameter configuration platform were developed to support the experiments on layout optimization and parameter configuration. The result shows that the station’s internal layout improves throughput when compared with the external scheme and increases space utilization without storage zones. Vertical zoning increases performance significantly. The performance is sensitive to the zoning strategy and storage area structural parameters.

Calanthe s.l. is the most diverse group in the tribe Collabieae (Orchidaceae), which are pantropical in distribution. Illumina sequencing followed by de novo assembly was used in this study, and the plastid genetic information of Calanthe s.l. was used to investigate the adaptive evolution of this taxon. Herein, the complete plastome of five Calanthe s.l. species (Calanthe davidii, Styloglossum lyroglossa, Preptanthe rubens, Cephalantheropsis obcordata, and Phaius tankervilliae) were determined, and the two other published plastome sequences of Calanthe s.l. were added for comparative analyses to examine the evolutionary pattern of the plastome in the alliance. The seven plastomes ranged from 150,181 bp (C. delavayi) to 159,014 bp (C. davidii) in length and were all mapped as circular structures. Except for the three ndh genes (ndhC, ndhF, and ndhK) lost in C. delavayi, the remaining six species contain identical gene orders and numbers (115 gene). Nucleotide diversity was detected across the plastomes, and we screened 14 mutational hotspot regions, including 12 non-coding regions and two gene regions. For the adaptive evolution investigation, three species showed positive selected genes compared with others, C. obcordata (cemA), S. lyroglossa (infA, ycf1 and ycf2) and C. delavayi (nad6 and ndhB). Six genes were under site-specific positive selection in Calanthe s.l., namely, accD, ndhB, ndhD, rpoC2, ycf1, and ycf2, most of which are involved in photosynthesis. These results, including the new plastomes, provide resources for the comparative plastome, breeding, and plastid genetic engineering of orchids and flowering plants.

Anticipating an odor improves detection and perception, yet the underlying neural mechanisms of olfactory anticipation are not well understood. In this study, we used human intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG) to show that anticipation resets the phase of delta oscillations in piriform cortex prior to odor arrival. Anticipatory phase reset correlates with ensuing odor-evoked theta power and improvements in perceptual accuracy. These effects were consistently present in each individual subject and were not driven by potential confounds of pre-inhale motor preparation or power changes. Together, these findings suggest that states of anticipation enhance olfactory perception through phase resetting of delta oscillations in piriform cortex.

Cephalotus follicularis is a carnivorous plant native to southwest Australia that belongs to the monospecific family Cephalotaceae. It forms both carnivorous pitcher leaves and non-carnivorous flat leaves, the pitcher leave makes it able to attract, catch, and digest their preys, usually insects, and assimilate nutrients for the growth. Previous studies of the plastid genome in carnivorous plants show various evolutionary changes. In this study, we report the complete plastid genome of C. follicularis, the circular plastid genome possesses a total length 142,706 bp with the typical quadripartite structure of angiosperms, contains 100 genes, the whole set of ndh-gene family in C. follicularis have been truncated or pseudogenized. Phylogenetic analyses based on plastid coding genes showed that C. follicularis and Averrhoa carambola formed the clade corresponding to Oxalidales. The complete plastome sequence of C. follicularis will provide a useful resource for the evolutionary biology study of carnivorous plants as well as for the phylogenetic studies in Oxalidales.

With the development of the social economy and the improvement of the consumption concept, a new business model combining offline and online has been promoted. The warehousing system is one of the important links of commodity production and circulation, which involves storage, sorting, and distribution. It has a significant impact on the operation cost and the efficiency of the whole logistics system. The progress of robot technology, the Internet of things, and artificial intelligence technology promotes the automation and intelligence of storage systems. The Robotic Mobile Fulfillment Systems (RMFS), which takes the automatic guided vehicles (AGVs) as the way of handling and picking, greatly improves the space utilization, operation efficiency, and flexibility of the system. This paper studies the RMFS with fixed shelves and establishes the performance evaluation model of the picking system considering the AGVs congestion by establishing the queuing network. The effectiveness of the model is verified by simulation, and the optimization of system parameter configuration is further discussed according to the experimental data.

Floral color polymorphism can provide great insight into species evolution from a genetic and ecological standpoint. Color variations between species are often mediated by pollinators and are fixed characteristics, indicating their relevance to adaptive evolution, especially between plants within a single population or between similar species. The orchid genus Pleione has a wide variety of flower colors, from violet, rose-purple, pink, to white, but their color formation and its evolutionary mechanism are unclear. Here, we selected the P. limprichtii population in Huanglong, Sichuan Province, China, which displayed three color variations: Rose-purple, pink, and white, providing ideal material for exploring color variations with regard to species evolution. We investigated the distribution pattern of the different color morphs. The ratio of rose-purple:pink:white-flowered individuals was close to 6:3:1. We inferred that the distribution pattern may serve as a reproductive strategy to maintain the population size. Metabolome analysis was used to reveal that cyanindin derivatives and delphidin are the main color pigments involved. RNA sequencing was used to characterize anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway-related genes and reveal different color formation pathways and transcription factors in order to identify differentially-expressed genes and explore their relationship with color formation. In addition, qRT-PCR was used to validate the expression patterns of some of the genes. The results show that PlFLS serves as a crucial gene that contributes to white color formation and that PlANS and PlUFGT are related to the accumulation of anthocyanin which is responsible for color intensity, especially in pigmented flowers. Phylogenetic and co-expression analyses also identified a R2R3-MYB gene PlMYB10, which is predicted to combine with PlbHLH20 or PlbHLH26 along with PlWD40-1 to form an MBW protein complex (MYB, bHLH, and WDR) that regulates PlFLS expression and may serve as a repressor of anthocyanin accumulation-controlled color variations. Our results not only explain the molecular mechanism of color variation in P. limprichtii, but also contribute to the exploration of a flower color evolutionary model in Pleione, as well as other flowering plants.

Apostasia shenzhenica is a terrestrial orchid, which belongs to Apostasioideae (Orchidaceae). Here, we determined the complete plastid genome of A. shenzhenica using the Illumina reads in an effort to provide genomic resources useful for its conservation and evolutionary biology study. It has a circular molecular length of 153,164 bp and contained 109 genes, including 75 protein-coding genes, 4 rRNA genes, and 30 tRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that A. shenzhenica was closely related to A. wallichii and embedded in Apostasioideae.

Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) exhibit great potentials in the fields of materials science, biomedicine, tissue engineering, catalysis, energy, environmental science, and analytical science due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Usually, CNFs with flat, mesoporous, and porous surfaces can be synthesized by chemical vapor deposition and electrospinning techniques with subsequent chemical treatment. Meanwhile, the surfaces of CNFs are easy to modify with various materials to extend the applications of CNF-based hybrid nanomaterials in multiple fields. In this review, we focus on the design, synthesis, and sensor applications of CNF-based functional nanomaterials. The fabrication strategies of CNF-based functional nanomaterials by adding metallic nanoparticles (NPs), metal oxide NPs, alloy, silica, polymers, and others into CNFs are introduced and discussed. In addition, the sensor applications of CNF-based nanomaterials for detecting gas, strain, pressure, small molecule, and biomacromolecules are demonstrated in detail. This work will be beneficial for the readers to understand the strategies for fabricating various CNF-based nanomaterials, and explore new applications in energy, catalysis, and environmental science.

Wheat heading date is an important agronomic trait determining maturation time and yield. A set of common wheat (Triticum aestivum var. Chinese Spring; CS)-wild emmer (T. turgidum L. subsp. dicoccoides (TDIC)) chromosome arm substitution lines (CASLs) was used to identify and allocate QTLs conferring late or early spike emergence by examining heading date. Genetic loci accelerating heading were found on TDIC chromosome arms 3AL and 7BS, while loci delaying heading were located on 4AL and 2BS. To map QTLs conferring late heading on 2BS, F2 populations derived from two cross combinations of CASL2BS × CS and CASL3AL × CASL2BS were developed and each planted at two times, constituting four F2 mapping populations. Heading date varied continuously among individuals of these four populations, suggesting quantitative characteristics. A genetic map of 2BS, consisting of 23 SSR and one single-stranded conformation polymorphism (SSCP) marker(s), was constructed using these F2 populations. This map spanned a genetic length of 53.2 cM with average marker density of 2.3 cM. The photoperiod-sensitivity gene Ppd-B1 was mapped to chromosome arm 2BS as a SSCP molecular marker, and was validated as tightly linked to a major QTL governing late heading of CASL2BS in all mapping populations. A significant dominance by additive effect of Ppd-B1 with the LUX gene located on 3AL was also detected. CS had more copies of Ppd-B1 than CASL2BS, implying that increased copy number could elevate the expression of Ppd-1 in CS, also increasing expression of LUX and FT genes and causing CS to have an earlier heading date than CASL2BS in long days.