Search

In Arabidopsis thaliana, female gametophyte (FG) development is accompanied by the formation and expansion of the large vacuole in the FG; this is essential for FG expansion, nuclear polar localization, and cell fate determination. Arabidopsis VACUOLELESS GAMETOPHYTES (VLG) facilitates vesicular fusion to form large vacuole in the FG, but the regulation of VLG remains largely unknown. Here, we found that gain-of-function mutation of BRASSINOSTEROID INSENSITIVE2 (BIN2) (bin2-1) increases VLG abundance to induce the vacuole formation at stage FG1, and leads to abortion of FG. Loss-of-function mutation of BIN2 and its homologs (bin2-3 bil1 bil2) reduced VLG abundance and mimicked vlg/VLG phenotypes. Knocking down VLG in bin2-1 decreased the ratio of aberrant vacuole formation at stage FG1, whereas FG1-specific overexpression of VLG mimicked the bin2-1 phenotype. VLG partially rescued the bin2-3 bil1 bil2 phenotype, demonstrating that VLG acts downstream of BIN2. Mutation of VLG residues that are phosphorylated by BIN2 altered VLG stability and a phosphorylation mimic of VLG causes similar defects as did bin2-1. Therefore, BIN2 may function by interacting with and phosphorylating VLG in the FG to enhance its stability and abundance, thus facilitating vacuole formation. Our findings provide mechanistic insight into how the BIN2-VLG module regulates the spatiotemporal formation of the large vacuole in FG development.

Shallow coal seam mining makes the evolution form of mining fissures in rock and soil layers diversified, which leads to the easy penetration of mining fissures as the main channel of water, sand inrush, and air leakage. In order to reveal the co-evolution mechanism of broken rock beam structure and mining fissures in key strata, taking Hanjiawan Coal Mine as the research background, the relationship between mining fissures and rock beam structure, fissure activation period, propagation characteristics, and connectivity of working face was studied by means of field observation, physical similarity simulation, and theoretical derivation. The research shows that the fracture structure of key strata in shallow coal seam mining mainly includes hinged rock beam and step rock beam structures. Through the analysis of the rock beam structure, we found that the types of mining fissures in the overlying strata of key strata were up and down I-I and I-II mining fissures, and the heights of fissure development were 44.38 m and 98.35 m, respectively. The key block rotation made the mining fissures undergo five dynamic activation processes. The calculation formula of the fissure activation cycle was established, and the rock breaking angle, mining fracture lag distance, and fissure penetration discriminant were obtained and verified by field measurement results.

Three new species of the genus Prosyntexis Sharkey, 1990 in the extinct sawfly family Sepulcidae, Prosyntexis aristovi sp. nov., P. lata sp. nov. and P. antennata sp. nov., are described from five well-preserved specimens from the mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber. These new species, the first records of the family Sepulcidae in Kachin amber, are placed in Prosyntexis (Trematothoracinae) based on the mesonotum membranous centrally with sides ridge transversely; forewing with the basally arched M+Cu; basal third or half of costal space narrowed; and 2r-m absent. The conspecific male and female of Prosyntexis lata with well-preserved genitalia are reported for the first time in the family Sepulcidae. A key to fossil species of Prosyntexis is provided. These new findings improve our understanding of Prosyntexis by adding more morphological features, such as antenna with no fewer than 16 segments, basal and distal hamuli present, tibia apical spurs 1-2-2, etc. The new taxa suggest that the Sepulcidae should range in age from at least from the Middle Jurassic to the mid-Cretaceous.

Ovule initiation is a key step that strongly influences ovule number and seed yield. Notably, mutants with enhanced brassinosteroid (BR) and cytokinin (CK) signaling produce more ovules and have a higher seed number per silique (SNS) than wild-type plants. Here, we crossed BR- and CK-related mutants to test whether these phytohormones function together in ovule initiation. We determined that simultaneously enhancing BR and CK contents led to higher ovule and seed numbers than enhancing BR or CK separately, and BR and CK enhanced each other. Further, the BR-response transcription factor BZR1 directly interacted with the CK-response transcription factor ARABIDOPSIS RESPONSE REGULATOR1 (ARR1). Treatments with BR or BR plus CK strengthened this interaction and subsequent ARR1 targeting and induction of downstream genes to promote ovule initiation. Enhanced CK signaling partially rescued the reduced SNS phenotype of BR-deficient/insensitive mutants whereas enhanced BR signaling failed to rescue the low SNS of CK-deficient mutants, suggesting that BR regulates ovule initiation and SNS through CK-mediated and CK-independent pathways. Our study thus reveals that interaction between BR and CK promotes ovule initiation and increases seed number, providing important clues for increasing the seed yield of dicot crops. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

In order to effectively protect the biological activity of Sparassis latifolia β-glucan, improve its stability, and realize its high-value utilization, single-factor test and orthogonal test were carried out to optimize the microencapsulation conditions of S. latifolia β-glucan prepared using spray drying method. The β-glucan microcapsules were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and laser particle size analyzer. The results showed that the optimal microencapsulation conditions were as follows: maltodextrin and whey protein with a mass ratio of 1:2, core and wall material with a mass ratio of 1:2, and monoglyceride and core material with a mass percentage of 0.3. Under these conditions, the powder yield and embedding rate of β-glucan microcapsules were 47.32 ± 0.58% and 86.76 ± 1.19%, respectively. The preparation technique was proved to be stable. The β-glucan microcapsules were spherical particles, with the characteristics of a smooth surface, no cracks. The particle size of microcapsules was smaller, and its Dv (50) was 8.43 µm. The distribution of microcapsules was more uniform, and its uniformity was 0.503. The good embedding performance and high thermal stability can effectively protect the biological activity of the core material.

Uniaxial tensile tests were carried out at room temperature (RT) and 250 °C, respectively, to investigate the effect of short-range ordering (SRO) on the mechanical properties and deformation micromechanism of fine-grained (FG) Cu–Mn alloys with high stacking fault energy. The results show that at RT, with the increase in SRO degree, the strength of FG Cu–Mn alloys is improved without a loss of ductility, and corresponding deformation micromechanism is mainly manifested by a decrease in the size of dislocation cells. In contrast, at a high temperature of 250 °C, the SRO degree becomes violently enhanced with increasing Mn content, and the deformation microstructures thus transform from dislocation cells to planar slip bands and even to deformation twins, significantly enhancing the work hardening capacity of the alloys and thus achieving a better strength-ductility synergy of FG Cu–Mn alloys.

Conventional assays for identifying polymorphism of aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) gene (rs671) are based on electrophoresis, fluorescence-labeled probes or sequencing, which are laborious and expensive. Herein, we proposed a visualized detection of ALDH2 genotype by PCR-based serial invasive reaction coupled with gold nanoparticle probe (GNP) assembling, in which target DNAs were firstly amplified by PCR, and then the alleles on the amplicons were identified by serial invasive reaction, and finally the genotyping results could be read out with naked eyes by observing the color changes caused by GNP assembling. If the allele-specific invasive probe matched the target sequence, the hairpin probe could be cleaved into two parts by Flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1). As a result, the GNPs could not be aggregated by the hairpin probe, keeping the solution red. Otherwise, the intact hairpin probe caused the aggregation of GNPs, leading to the color change from red to purple or clear. Therefore, the genotyping result could be read out with naked eyes by observing the color changes of the reaction. As low as 80 pg of genomic DNA could be accurately genotyped, and the genotyping results of 207 clinical samples were consistent with that of pyrosequencing, indicating that the proposed method has great potential in genotyping of personalized medicine-related single nucleotide polymorphism.

Heading date, panicle architecture, and grain size are key traits that affect the yield of rice (Oryza sativa). Here, we identified a new gene, OsGATA6, whose product regulates heading date. Overexpression of OsGATA6 resulted in delayed heading, increased grain number, and decreased grain size. Knockdown lines generated by artificial microRNA (amiRNA) and CRISPR genome-edited lines of OsGATA6 both showed earlier heading, decreased grain number, and increased grain size. These results suggested that OsGATA6 negatively regulates heading date, positively regulates panicle development, and affects grain size. OsGATA6 was found to be constitutively expressed in rice, and strongly expressed in young leaves and panicles. In situ hybridization analyses showed that OsGATA6 was specifically localized in superficial cells of the panicle primordium. Overexpression lines show decreased expression of RFT1 and Hd3a, which promote heading. OsMFT1, which delays heading date and increases grain number, was down-regulated in amiRNA lines. Further analyses showed that OsGATA6 could bind to the promoter of OsMFT1 and induce its expression, thereby regulating heading date and panicle development. Overexpression of OsGATA6 in Arabidopsis resulted in repressed expression of AtFT and late flowering, suggesting that its function is similar. Taken together, we have identified a new GATA regulator that influences rice heading date and grain number, which potentially increases rice yield.

In order to further improve the robustness of the ambiguity suppression related filtering algorithm (ARCF) tracking in many complex scenes such as rapid motion and occlusion, an adaptive normal punishment coefficient is proposed based on the relevant filter algorithm of automatic space-time normalization. At the same time, in order to make the tracking results more accurate, a object peak detection and selection algorithm is proposed specifically for multi-peak situation, which can determine the peak condition of the response map of the current frame and select the peak that best meets the object in multi-peak situation. In the template update stage, in order to keep the updated template from the pollution of similarities and masks, this paper also proposes a situation to detect whether the object is obscured, as a condition for the template update, so that the object template can better match the object.

Two types of tonoplast proton pumps, H+ -pyrophosphatase (V-PPase) and the H+ -ATPase (V-ATPase), establish the proton gradient that powers molecular traffic across the tonoplast thereby facilitating turgor regulation and nutrient homeostasis. However, how proton pumps regulate development remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the function of two types of proton pumps in Arabidopsis embryo development and pattern formation. While disruption of either V-PPase or V-ATPase had no obvious effect on plant embryo development, knocking out both resulted in severe defects in embryo pattern formation from the early stage. While the first division in wild-type zygote was asymmetrical, a nearly symmetrical division occurred in the mutant, followed by abnormal pattern formation at all stages of embryo development. The embryonic defects were accompanied by dramatic differences in vacuole morphology and distribution, as well as disturbed localisation of PIN1. The development of mutant cotyledons and root, and the auxin response of mutant seedlings supported the hypothesis that mutants lacking tonoplast proton pumps were defective in auxin transport and distribution. Taking together, we proposed that two tonoplast proton pumps are required for vacuole morphology and PIN1 localisation, thereby controlling vacuole and auxin-related developmental processes in Arabidopsis embryos and seedlings.

Caseinate was crosslinked by horseradish peroxidase (HRP) or microbial transglutaminase (TGase) and mixed with kaempferol and quercetin at 293–313 K (i.e. 20–40 °C), respectively. Generally, these two polyphenols dose-dependently induced fluorescent quenching in caseinate or its crosslinked products via a static mechanism, while enzymatic crosslinking endowed caseinate with higher affinity for the polyphenols with increased apparent binding constants [(9.94–168.77) × 105 versus (4.92–6.53) × 105 L/mol], unchanged binding site number and slightly shortened binding distance. To form protein–polyphenol complexes, hydrophobic force was the main driving force for the HRP-crosslinked caseinate and unreacted caseinate, while hydrogen-bonds and van der Waals force were the main driving forces for the TGase-crosslinked caseinate. Overall, quercetin was more potent than kaempferol to bind to the proteins, while TGase-mediated caseinate crosslinking induced the highest affinity to the polyphenols with the largest ΔG decrease. Thus, two types of crosslinking impacted the driving forces, apparent binding constant and thermodynamic indices of caseinate-polyphenol interaction.

In this paper, we carried out multiwavelength observations of three recurring jets on 2014 November 7. The jets originated from the same region at the edge of AR 12205 and propagated along the same coronal loop. The eruptions were generated by magnetic reconnection, which is evidenced by continuous magnetic cancellation at the jet base. The projected initial velocity of jet2 is ∼402 km s−1. The accelerations in the ascending and descending phases of jet2 are not consistent, the former is considerably larger than the value of g ⊙ at the solar surface, while the latter is lower than g ⊙. There are two possible candidates of extra forces acting on jet2 during its propagation. One is the downward gas pressure from jet1 when it falls back and meets with jet2. The other is the viscous drag from the surrounding plasma during the fast propagation of jet2. As a contrast, the accelerations of jet3 in the rising and falling phases are constant, implying that the propagation of jet3 is not significantly influenced by extra forces.

Objective. To observe the protective effect of AC-YVAD-CMK on sepsis-induced acute kidney injury in mice and to explore its possible mechanisms primarily. Methods. Eighteen male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into sham-operated group (Control), cecal ligation and puncture group (CLP), and CLP model treated with AC-YVAD-CMK group (AC-YVAD-CMK) ( n = 6 in each group). Mice were sacrificed at 24 h after operation, and blood and kidney tissue samples were collected for analyses. Histologic changes were determined microscopically following HE staining. The expression of Ly-6B and CD68 was investigated using immunohistochemistry. Serum concentrations of creatinine (sCR) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) were measured. Serum levels of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-18 (IL-18), TNF-α, and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were determined by ELISA. The expressions of Caspas-1, NLRP-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 in renal tissues were investigated using Western blot. Immunofluorescence staining was used to detect the expression of GSDMD protein in renal tissues. Results. AC-YVAD-CMK treatment significantly alleviates sepsis-induced acute kidney injury, with decreased histological injury in renal tissues, suppresses the accumulation of neutrophils and macrophages in renal tissues, and decreased sCR and BUN level ( P < 0.05 ). Attenuation of sepsis-induced acute kidney injury was due to the prohibited production of inflammatory cytokines and decrease expression of Caspas-1, NLRP-1, IL-1β, and IL-18 in renal tissues. In addition, AC-YVAD-CMK treatment significantly reduced the expression of GSDMD in renal tissues compared to those observed in controls ( P < 0.05 ). Conclusions. We demonstrated a marked renoprotective effect of caspase-1-inhibitor AC-YVAD-CMK in a rat model of sepsis by inhibition of pyroptosis.

Plant ovule initiation determines the maximum of ovule number and has a great impact on the seed number per fruit. The detailed processes of ovule initiation have not been accurately described, although two connected processes, gynoecium and ovule development, have been investigated. Here, we report that ovules initiate asynchronously. The first group of ovule primordia grows out, the placenta elongates, the boundaries of existing ovules enlarge and a new group of primordia initiates from the boundaries. The expression pattern of different marker genes during ovule development illustrates that this asynchronicity continues throughout whole ovule development. PIN-FORMED1 polar distribution and auxin response maxima correlate with ovule primordia asynchronous initiation. We have established computational modeling to show how auxin dynamics influence ovule primordia initiation. Brassinosteroid signaling positively regulates ovule number by promoting placentae size and ovule primordia initiation through strengthening auxin response. Transcriptomic analysis demonstrates numerous known regulators of ovule development and hormone signaling, and many new genes are identified that are involved in ovule development. Taken together, our results illustrate that the ovule primordia initiate asynchronously and the hormone signals are involved in the asynchrony., Summary: Ovule primordia initiation, which determines the maximum ovule number and subsequent seed number in Arabidopsis, is asynchronous and is regulated by PIN1 polar distribution and the auxin response.

Consumption of functional juice is becoming increasingly popular. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of probiotic fermentation with Bacillus sp. DU-106; Lactobacillus planturum Lp-43 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus Lr-156 on the biochemical and functional characteristics, antioxidant activities and storage stability of Dendrobium officinale and banana (DOB) juice. The cell levels of the lactic acid bacteria reached near 9 log copies/mL after fermentation at 32 °C for 36 h and could keep in this level after storage at 4 °C for 28 days. After fermentation, total acidity, flavonoids and polysaccharide contents of DOB juice increased, while pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrite, nitrate, vitamin C, β-carotene, sugar contents and antioxidant capacity slightly decreased. Compared with nonfermented DOB juice, polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) activities of fermented DOB decreased significantly, but the color value and the content of total phenols and vitamin C decreased slightly in fermented DOB juice during storage. Overall, the probiotic fermentation with selected strains could improve the quality the DOB juice, enhance antioxidant capacity and storage stability, and destroy accumulation of nitrite and nitrate during storage. Findings of this study would help in the development of beneficial beverages in industrial production.

This article considers fractional coupled networks with discrete and distributed delays, an algebraic criterion on global synchronization is derived by using fractional Razumikhin approach and matrix inequalities. Furthermore, two types of special fractional delayed networks are also investigated and several simple sufficient conditions on global synchronization are presented, respectively. Finally, two numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the validity of our theoretical results.

Fluorescent cellulose nanocrystals (fCNCs) have shown a great potential as optical probe for the applications of bioimaging or metal ion detection. In this work, by a controllable esterification strategy, the cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) surface was modified with ethylenediaminetetraacetic dianhydride (EDTAD) to achieve highly carboxylation degree, and, meanwhile, keep surface integration and crystalline structure in comparison with the TEMPO oxidation method. Then, the controllability of carboxylation degree was applied to produce a series of fCNCs with various conjugating densities of fluorescent 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (AMC). The steric effect of AMCs on the fCNC surface could inhibit self-quenching, resulting in a more stable fluorescence intensity independent upon the change of fCNC concentration and a relatively high quantum efficiency in the solid state. Moreover, the fluorescence signals of fCNC can be selectively affected by Cu2+, and even high Cu2+ concentration resulted in the visualized color change from blue to purple under ultraviolet radiation. Hence, two linear correlations with the Cu2+ concentration, i.e. the fluorescence attenuation ratio at 390 nm in 0.5–16 ppm of Cu2+ concentration and the fluorescence intensity ratio of 440 nm versus 390 nm in 16–160 ppm of Cu2+ concentration, contributed to a potential of quantitative Cu2+ detection. Especially, the on–off behavior of the fCNC fluorescence at the critical Cu2+ concentration of 0.5 ppm was well consistent with the requirement of the Guideline of Drinking-Water Quality (GDWQ) administrated by World Health Organization (WHO), and hence might be used to rapid and visualized evaluation of drinking water quality. This work provides a new fluorescent nanomaterial that can be used in metal ion detection. Furthermore, the nontoxicity, biodegradability and environment-friendliness of cellulose nanocrystals might also contribute to the additional advantages for the application of environmental surveillance.

Forty-seven surface pollen samples and 141 vegetation quadrats were investigated in the Lhasa Valley in order to assess the relationships between local modern pollen assemblages and vegetation and climate. The regional climatic data for each sample are mean annual precipitation (Pann), mean annual temperature (Tann), summer temperature (Tsummer), actual evapotranspiration (AET), potential evapotranspiration (PET), and moisture index (MI), estimated by co-kriging using meteorological data from 16 climate stations in or near the Lhasa Valley. Cluster analysis, principal components analysis (PCA), Procrustes analysis, and co-correspondence analysis (Co-CA) were used to evaluate the relationship between modern pollen assemblages and contemporary vegetation. Linear regression was used to examine the relationships between pollen ratios (Artemisia/Chenopodiaceae (A/C), Artemisia/Cyperaceae (A/Cy), Artemisia + Chenopodiaceae/Cyperaceae (AC/Cy)), aridity pollen index, total arboreal pollen (AP), and the climatic variables. Cluster analysis and PCA results are generally consistent, and differentiate between pollen assemblages from arid conditions and those from more humid conditions. However, the PCA results distinguish pollen assemblages from shrubland slightly more clearly than the cluster analysis does. The PCA results show a general agreement between the modern pollen assemblages and contemporary vegetation types, but pollen assemblages from coniferous (Juniperus) woodland cannot be distinguished from shrub grassland, meadow, or shrub meadow pollen assemblages in the PCA results. Both Procrustes analysis and associated permutation tests and Co-CA show a strong statistically significant relationship between modern pollen and vegetation composition. Analysis of the relationship between the climatic variables and vegetation types suggests that humidity (Pann and MI) is the main variable related to the vegetation types within the restricted areas of the Lhasa Valley. Neither the A/C ratio nor the aridity pollen index is a reliable aridity indicator in the Lhasa Valley. The AP sum may be a weak precipitation indicator, whereas the A/Cy and AC/Cy ratios appear to be robust indicators of precipitation, aridity, and temperature at the scale of the Lhasa Valley.

Renal tubule cell apoptosis plays a pivotal role in the progression of chronic renal diseases. The previous study indicates that Sirolimus is effective on unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO)-induced renal fibrosis. However, the role of Sirolimus in renal tubular apoptosis induced by UUO has not yet been addressed. The aim of this study was to determine the role of Sirolimus in renal tubular apoptosis induced by UUO. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups, sham-operated rats, and after which unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) was performed: non-treated and sirolimus-treated (1mg/kg). After 4, 7 and 14 d, animals were sacrificed and blood, kidney tissue samples were collected for analyses. Histologic changes and interstitial collagen were determined microscopically following HE and Masson's trichrome staining. The expression of PCNA was investigated using immunohistochemistry and the expression of Bcl-2, Bax, caspase-9, and caspase-3 were investigated using Western blot in each group. Tubular apoptotic cell deaths were assessed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay. Sirolimus administration resulted in a significant reduction in tubulointerstitial fibrosis scores. After UUO, there was an increase in tubular and interstitial apoptosis in untreated controls as compared to Sirolimus treatment rats (P

The main determinant of crop yield is seed yield. In Arabidopsi, many of the genes that regulate seed number are involved in gametophyte and zygote development, and their overexpression cannot increase seed number. However, several mutants with enhanced brassinosteroid (BR) and cytokinin (CK) signals show increased seed number per silique (SNS). Here, we studied the crosstalk between BR and CK signals in regulating SNS through crossing BR- and CK-related mutants. Compared with the mutants ckx3 ckx5 and bzr1-1D , the triple mutant ckx3 ckx5 bzr1-1D with enhanced BR and CK signals formed elongated placentae and showed increased ovule initiation and SNS, indicating that BR and CK synergistically up-regulate SNS. Although BR enhanced the CK signal and CK enhanced the BR signal, while CK partially rescued the phenotypes of BR deficient- and -insensitive mutants, BR could not rescue the phenotypes of CK-deficient mutants. This suggested that CK functions downstream of BR in regulating SNS and that BR regulates SNS through CK-mediated or CK-independent pathways. Comparative transcriptome analyses of ckx3 ckx5 , bzr1-1D , and ckx3 ckx5 bzr1-1D identified known and new genes involved in ovule initiation. The BR-induced transcription factor BZR1 was found to directly interact with the B-type regulator of CK, ARR1, and this interaction enhanced the ability of ARR1 to target and induce genes related to ovule development. Our results demonstrate that BR and CK synergistically increase SNS through co-regulating downstream genes involved in ovule identity and initiation. The genes involved in this process have potential applications in enhancing crop yield.

The work-hardening behavior of Cu&ndash, Ni alloys with high stacking-fault energies (SFEs) is experimentally investigated under uniaxial compression. It is found that, with the increase of Ni content (or short-range clustering, SRC), the flow stress of Cu&ndash, Ni alloys is significantly increased, which is mainly attributed to an enhanced contribution of work-hardening. An unexpected multistage (including Stages A, B, and C) work-hardening process was found in this alloy, and such a work-hardening behavior is essentially related to the existence of SRC structures in alloys. Specifically, during deformation in Stage B (within the strain range of 0.04&ndash, 0.07), the forming tendency to planar-slip dislocation structures becomes enhanced with an increase of SRC content (namely, increase of Ni content), leading to the occurrence of work-hardening rate recovery in the Cu&ndash, 20at.% Ni alloy. In short, increasing SRC in the Cu&ndash, Ni alloy can trigger an unexpected multistage work-hardening process, and thus improve its work-hardening capacity.