Little is known about the changes in soil microbial phosphorus (P) cycling potential during terrestrial ecosystem management and restoration, although much research aims to enhance soil P cycling. ...Here, we used metagenomic sequencing to analyse 18 soil microbial communities at a P-deficient degraded mine site in southern China where ecological restoration was implemented using two soil ameliorants and eight plant species. Our results show that the relative abundances of key genes governing soil microbial P-cycling potential were higher at the restored site than at the unrestored site, indicating enhancement of soil P cycling following restoration. The gcd gene, encoding an enzyme that mediates inorganic P solubilization, was predominant across soil samples and was a major determinant of bioavailable soil P. We reconstructed 39 near-complete bacterial genomes harboring gcd, which represented diverse novel phosphate-solubilizing microbial taxa. Strong correlations were found between the relative abundance of these genomes and bioavailable soil P, suggesting their contributions to the enhancement of soil P cycling. Moreover, 84 mobile genetic elements were detected in the scaffolds containing gcd in the 39 genomes, providing evidence for the role of phage-related horizontal gene transfer in assisting soil microbes to acquire new metabolic potential related to P cycling.
Enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) is a major pathogen that causes hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD), which occasionally results in severe neurological complications. In this study, we developed four EV-A71 ...(rgEV-A71) strains by reverse genetics procedures as possible vaccine candidates. The four rgEV-A71 viruses contained various codon-deoptimized VP1 capsid proteins (VP1-CD) and showed replication rates and antigenicity similar to that of the wild-type virus, while a fifth virus, rg4643C4VP-CD, was unable to form plaques but was still able to be examined by median tissue culture infectious dose (TCID
) titers, which were similar to those of the others, indicating the effect of CD on plaque formation. However, the genome stability showed that there were some mutations which appeared during just one passage of the VP1-CD viruses. Thus, we further constructed VP1-CD rgEV-A71 containing high-fidelity determinants in 3D polymerase (CD-HF), and the number of mutations in CD-HF rgEV-A71 was shown to have decreased. The CD-HF viruses showed less virulence than the parental strain in a mouse infection model. After 14 days postimmunization, antibody titers had increased in mice infected with CD-HF viruses. The mouse antisera showed similar neutralizing antibody titers against various CD-HF viruses and different genotypes of EV-A71. The study demonstrates the proof of concept that VP1 codon deoptimization combined with high-fidelity 3D polymerase decreased EV-A71 mutations and virulence in mice but retained their antigenicity, indicating it is a good candidate for next-generation EV-A71 vaccine development.
EV-A71 can cause severe neurological diseases with fatality in infants and young children, but there are still no effective drugs to date. Here, we developed a novel vaccine strategy with the combination of CD and HF substitutions to generate the genetically stable reverse genetics virus. We found that CD combined with HF polymerase decreased the virulence but maintained the antigenicity of the virus. This work demonstrated the simultaneous introduction of CD genome sequences and HF substitutions as a potential new strategy to develop attenuated vaccine seed virus. Our work provides insight into the development of a low-virulence candidate vaccine virus through a series of genetic editing of virus sequences while maintaining its antigenicity and genome stability, which will provide an additional strategy for next-generation vaccine development of EV-A71.
Graphene is expected to enable superior corrosion protection due to its impermeability and chemical inertness. Previous reports, however, demonstrate limited corrosion inhibition and even corrosion ...enhancement of graphene on metal surfaces. To enable the reliable and complete passivation, the origin of the low inhibition efficiency of graphene was investigated. Combining electrochemical and morphological characterization techniques, nanometer-sized structural defects in chemical vapor deposition grown graphene were found to be the cause for the limited passivation effect. Extremely fast mass transport on the order of meters per second both across and parallel to graphene layers results in an inhibition efficiency of only ∼50% for Cu covered with up to three graphene layers. Through selective passivation of the defects by atomic layer deposition (ALD) an enhanced corrosion protection of more than 99% was achieved, which compares favorably with commercial corrosion protection methods.
The necessity for new sources for greener and cleaner energy production to replace the existing ones has been increasingly growing in recent years. Of those new sources, the hydrogen evolution ...reaction has a large potential. In this work, for the first time, MoSe2/Mo core–shell 3D‐hierarchical nanostructures are created, which are derived from the Mo 3D‐hierarchical nanostructures through a low‐temperature plasma‐assisted selenization process with controlled shapes grown by a glancing angle deposition system.
A photoconversion efficiency of 1.83 % was observed for a photodevice based on ZnO nanowires sensitized with CdTe quantum dots (QDs; see picture; FTO=F‐doped SnO2), which is more than 200 % greater ...than that of pristine ZnO nanowires. The presence of CdTe QDs on the surface of ZnO nanowires was confirmed by HRTEM and elemental mapping.
Despite a rich history of theoretical and empirical work showing that increasing biodiversity results in higher ecosystem function, this research has not made a commensurate impact on the reclamation ...of degraded lands, where enhancing ecosystem function is of primary importance.
In this study, we manipulated plant diversity on heavily degraded mine lands and showed that increasing plant diversity greatly enhanced the reclamation of these lands. We found that high‐diversity assemblages were often associated with more biomass, higher stability and less toxic foliage than low diversity treatments, although the monocultures of Miscanthus sinensis (the most productive species) performed equally well as some of the polycultures.
Our results showed that species composition and richness explained most of the total variation in biomass yield of the experimental plots, indicating that both the selection and complementarity effects influenced the positive diversity effects observed in this study.
Miscanthus sinensis and legumes (as a functional group) were found to be the main contributors to the selection effect. The plots with M. sinensis tended to harbour fewer soil fungal pathogens than those without it and a similar pattern was observed for the legumes, indicating a poorly known plant–soil fungal pathogen feedback for these plants. This kind of feedback appeared to play an important role also in shaping the positive plant species richness–ecosystem function relationships recorded in the degraded mine land. More importantly, we provide the first evidence that the observed plant–soil fungal pathogen feedbacks were likely mediated by chitinolytic bacteria that release anti‐fungal enzymes. Cellulose‐degrading bacteria that aid in plant decomposition and nutrient cycling also attained higher abundances in plots with higher plant diversity, suggesting the contribution of another kind of plant–soil feedback to the positive diversity effects.
Synthesis and applications. Our findings reveal that highly diverse plant assemblages are better able to spur plant–soil feedbacks and that increasing plant diversity is an important strategy to enhance land reclamation efficiency after contamination. Meanwhile, our results also indicate that some plants such as Miscanthus sinensis and legumes should be preferentially used to establish diverse plant communities for rapid reclamation of degraded lands.
抽象
在退化土地的生态恢复中，增强生态系统的功能显得尤为重要。虽然过往大量研究已经反复证明了增加生物多样性能够提高生态系统功能；但是，这些理论研究成果并没有在退化土地的生态恢复方面产生广泛的影响。
本研究在典型的退化土地——铅锌尾矿库上开展了一项大型的野外试验，探究生物多样性对退化土地生态恢复的影响及其机制。结果显示，增加生物多样性有助于退化土地生态恢复，能够提高重建生态系统（植物群落）的生产力与稳定性，降低有毒重金属在植物地上部的累积；但是，生产力最高的物种——芒草（Miscanthus sinensis）的单种样方在上述几个方面的表现与生物多样性最高的混种样方相当。
我们发现，物种的组成与丰富度解释了样方生物量的大部分变异。这说明选择效应和互补效应同时影响着本研究中所观察到的生物多样性对生态系统功能的正效应。
芒草和豆科植物是选择效应的主要贡献者。有芒草的样方的土壤病原真菌的相对丰度显著低于没有芒草的样方；类似地，有豆科植物的样方的土壤病原真菌的相对丰度也显著低于没有豆科植物的样方。这些结果暗示了一种我们了解甚少的芒草和豆科植物与土壤病原真菌之间的反馈机制；而正是这种的反馈积极推动了本研究发现的生物多样性——生态系统功能之间的正相关关系。更重要的是，本研究首次发现，上述植物类群与土壤病原真菌之间的反馈过程很可能是由能释放抗病原真菌物质的几丁质分解细菌所介导的。此外，在生物多样性高的样方中，有助于植物凋落物分解和碳循环的纤维素降解细菌的相对丰度也更高。这表明另一种此前未被报道的植物与土壤之间的反馈也对本研究观察到的生物多样性——生态系统功能关系做出了积极贡献。
总结与应用。本研究的结果表明，生物多样性高的植物群落能够更好地刺激植物与土壤之间的反馈，而增加植物群落的物种多样性无疑是提高退化土地生态恢复效率的重要策略。同时，我们的结果还表明，在退化土地生态恢复的实践中，应优先选用芒草和豆科植物来建立生物多样性较高的植物群落，从而达到高效快速地对退化土地进行生态恢复的目的。
Our findings reveal that highly diverse plant assemblages are better able to spur plant–soil feedbacks and that increasing plant diversity is an important strategy to enhance land reclamation efficiency after contamination. Meanwhile, our results also indicate that some plants such as Miscanthus sinensis and legumes should be preferentially used to establish diverse plant communities for rapid reclamation of degraded lands.
ABSTRACT
Phosphate‐solubilizing microbes (PSMs) drive the biogeochemical cycling of phosphorus (P) and hold promise for sustainable agriculture. However, their global distribution, overall diversity ...and application potential remain unknown. Here, we present the first synthesis of their biogeography, diversity and utility, employing data from 399 papers published between 1981 and 2017, the results of a nationwide field survey in China consisting of 367 soil samples, and a genetic analysis of 12986 genome‐sequenced prokaryotic strains. We show that at continental to global scales, the population density of PSMs in environmental samples is correlated with total P rather than pH. Remarkably, positive relationships exist between the population density of soil PSMs and available P, nitrate‐nitrogen and dissolved organic carbon in soil, reflecting functional couplings between PSMs and microbes driving biogeochemical cycles of nitrogen and carbon. More than 2704 strains affiliated with at least nine archaeal, 88 fungal and 336 bacterial species were reported as PSMs. Only 2.59% of these strains have been tested for their efficiencies in improving crop growth or yield under field conditions, providing evidence that PSMs are more likely to exert positive effects on wheat growing in alkaline P‐deficient soils. Our systematic genetic analysis reveals five promising PSM genera deserving much more attention.
The adrenal gland is a vital endocrine organ, and adrenal steroid synthesis and secretion are closely regulated by the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis in response to various stimuli. ...Surgery or trauma can activate the HPA axis and induce the secretion of cortisol. Different cortisol responses vary with the grade of surgery. Perioperative medications have the potential to decrease the cortisol level in the body, and both excessive and insufficient cortisol levels after surgery are disadvantageous. The effect of perioperative medications on the HPA response to surgery can be divided into three levels: “adrenal insufficiency (AI)”, “stress response inhibition”, and “uncertainty”. The clinical presentation of AI includes fatigue, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, muscle cramps, hypotension, hypovolemic shock and prerenal failure, which may result in fatal consequences. Stress response inhibition can reduce postoperative complications, such as pain and cognitive dysfunction. This is protective to patients during perioperative and postoperative periods. The aim of the present review is to shed light on current evidence regarding the exact effects and mechanisms of perioperative medications on the HPA response to surgical injury and provide the applicable guidance on clinical anesthesia.
•Etomidate-induced AI occurred centrally in critically ill patients and the inhibition of steroidogenesis occurred at the level of the adrenal gland.•Both prolonged and acute routes of opioids can induce AI, and the inhibition of the HPA axis occurred mainly at the hypothalamic level.•Perioperative injection of glucocorticoid via the conventional route and dose can induce AI with a long-term recovery, but the clinical symptoms are atypical and easily ignored by anesthesiologists.•Prolonged intravenous infusion of α2-adrenoceptor agonists in children carries the risk of transient AI.
ST3Gal1 is a key sialyltransferase which adds α2,3‐linked sialic acid to substrates and generates core 1 O‐glycan structure. Upregulation of ST3Gal1 has been associated with worse prognosis of breast ...cancer patients. However, the protein substrates of ST3Gal1 implicated in tumor progression remain elusive. In our study, we demonstrated that ST3GAL1‐silencing significantly reduced tumor growth along with a notable decrease in vascularity of MCF7 xenograft tumors. We identified vasorin (VASN) which was shown to bind TGF‐β1, as a potential candidate that links ST3Gal1 to angiogenesis. LC‐MS/MS analysis of VASN secreted from MCF7, revealed that more than 80% of its O‐glycans are sialyl‐3T and disialyl‐T. ST3GAL1‐silencing or desialylation of VASN by neuraminidase enhanced its binding to TGF‐β1 by 2‐ to 3‐fold and thereby dampening TGF‐β1 signaling and angiogenesis, as indicated by impaired tube formation of HUVECs, suppressed angiogenesis gene expression and reduced activation of Smad2 and Smad3 in HUVEC cells. Examination of 114 fresh primary breast cancer and their adjacent normal tissues showed that the expression levels of ST3Gal1 and TGFB1 were high in tumor part and the expression of two genes was positively correlated. Kaplan Meier survival analysis showed a significantly shorter relapse‐free survival for those with lower expression VASN, notably, the combination of low VASN with high ST3GAL1 yielded even higher risk of recurrence (p = 0.025, HR = 2.967, 95% CI = 1.14–7.67). Since TGF‐β1 is known to transcriptionally activate ST3Gal1, our findings illustrated a feedback regulatory loop in which TGF‐β1 upregulates ST3Gal1 to circumvent the negative impact of VASN.
What's new?
The addition of sialic acid to glycoproteins is dysregulated in many cancers, and enhanced expression of one key enzyme, the sialyltransferase ST3Gal1, is associated with poor prognosis. Here, the authors identified the membrane protein vasorin as a new ST3Gal1 substrate and connect it with TGF‐β1‐induced signaling and angiogenesis in breast cancer. As silencing of ST3Gal1 dampened TGF‐β1 signaling and suppressed angiogenesis, development of ST3Gal1 inhibitors might be clinically useful to improve the prognosis of breast cancer patients.
Inhibitory control, or the ability to suppress planned but inappropriate prepotent actions in the current environment, plays an important role in the control of human performance. Evidence from ...empirical studies utilizing a sport-specific design has shown that athletes have superior inhibitory control. However, less is known about whether this superiority might (1) still be seen in a general cognitive task without a sport-related context; (2) be modulated differentially by different sporting expertise (e.g., tennis versus swimming).
Here we compared inhibitory control across tennis players, swimmers and sedentary non-athletic controls using a stop-signal task without a sport-specific design. Our primary finding showed that tennis players had shorter stop-signal reaction times (SSRTs) when compared to swimmers and sedentary controls, whereas no difference was found between swimmers and sedentary controls. Importantly, this effect was further confirmed after considering potential confounding factors (e.g., BMI, training experience, estimated levels of physical activity and VO2max), indicative of better ability to inhibit unrequired responses in tennis players.
This suggests that fundamental inhibitory control in athletes can benefit from open skill training. Sport with both physical and cognitive demands may provide a potential clinical intervention for those who have difficulties in inhibitory control.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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