Odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) mediate both perception and release of semiochemicals in insects. These proteins are the ideal targets for understanding the olfactory code of insects as well as for ...interfering with their communication system in order to control pest species. The two sibling Lepidopteran species Helicoverpa armigera and H. assulta are two major agricultural pests. As part of our aim to characterize the OBP repertoire of these two species, here we focus our attention on a member of this family, OBP10, particularly interesting for its expression pattern. The protein is specifically expressed in the antennae of both sexes, being absent from other sensory organs. However, it is highly abundant in seminal fluid, is transferred to females during mating and is eventually found on the surface of fertilised eggs. Among the several different volatile compounds present in reproductive organs, OBP10 binds 1-dodecene, a compound reported as an insect repellent. These results have been verified in both H. armigera and H. assulta with no apparent differences between the two species. The recombinant OBP10 binds, besides 1-dodecene, some linear alcohols and several aromatic compounds. The structural similarity of OBP10 with OBP1 of the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus, a protein reported to bind an oviposition pheromone, and its affinity with 1-dodecene suggest that OBP10 could be a carrier for oviposition deterrents, favouring spreading of the eggs in these species where cannibalism is active among larvae.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Skin damages are defined as one of most common lesions people suffer from, some of wounds are notoriously difficult to eradicate such as chronic wounds and deep burns. Existing wound therapies have ...been proved to be inadequate and far from satisfactory. The cutting-edge nanotechnology offers an unprecedented opportunity to revolutionize and invent new therapies or boost the effectiveness of current medical treatments. In particular, the nano-drug delivery systems anchor bioactive molecules to applied area, sustain the drug release and explicitly enhance the therapeutic efficacies of drugs, thus making a fine figure in field relevant to skin regeneration. This review summarized and discussed the current nano-drug delivery systems holding pivotal potential for wound healing and skin regeneration, with a special emphasis on liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, inorganic nanoparticles, lipid nanoparticles, nanofibrous structures and nanohydrogel.
Antennae are often considered to be the nostrils of insects. Here, we sequenced the transcriptome of the pheromone gland-ovipositor complex of
and discovered that an odorant receptor (OR) gene,
, had ...much higher expression in the ovipositor than in antennae or other tissues. To determine whether the ovipositor was involved in odorant detection, we co-expressed
and its co-receptor,
, in a
oocyte model system, and demonstrated that the OR was responsive to 12 plant odorants, especially Z-3-hexenyl butyrate. These odorants elicited electrophysiological responses of some sensilla in the ovipositor, and
and
were co-expressed within ovipositor sensilla. Two oviposition preference experiments showed that female moths lacking antennae still preferentially selected oviposition sites containing plant volatiles. We suggest that the expression of
in the ovipositor of
helps females to determine precise egg-laying sites in host plants.
Immunosuppressive molecules are extremely valuable prognostic biomarkers across different cancer types. However, the diversity of different immunosuppressive molecules makes it very difficult to ...accurately predict clinical outcomes based only on a single immunosuppressive molecule. Here, we establish a comprehensive immune scoring system (ISS
) based on 6 immunosuppressive ligands (NECTIN2, CEACAM1, HMGB1, SIGLEC6, CD44, and CD155) using the LASSO method to improve prognostic accuracy and provide an additional selection strategy for adjuvant chemotherapy of gastric cancer (GC). The results show that ISS
is an independent prognostic factor and a supplement of TNM stage for GC patients, and it can improve their prognosis prediction accuracy; in addition, it can distinguish GC patients with better prognosis from those with high prognostic nutritional index score; furthermore, ISS
can also be used as a tool to select GC patients who would benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy independent of their TNM stages, MSI status and EBV status.
This review provides a comprehensive survey of the structural characteristics of crystal networks of silk soft fibrous materials in correlation with the macroscopic properties/performance and the ...network formation mechanisms. The correlation between the hierarchical mesoscopic structures and the mechanical properties of silk soft fibrous materials including silk fibroin hydrogels and naturally spun silk fibers are addressed based on the hierarchical crystal network models. Namely, two types of hierarchical networks are identified: the weak nanofibril–nanofibril interaction case (i.e., silk fibroin hydrogels), and the strong nanofibril–nanofibril interaction case (i.e., silk fibers). The macroscopic properties, i.e., the rheological/mechanical properties, can be controlled in terms of tuning different levels of hierarchical network structures by ultrasonication‐induced gelation, introducing the initial nucleation centers, etc. Such controls take effect by different mesoscale assembly pathways, which are found to occur via different routes of the nucleation and growth processes. Furthermore, the hierarchical network model of soft fibrous materials can be applied to explain the superior mechanical properties and the unique strain‐hardening behaviors of spider silk fibers within the framework of hierarchical breaking mechanism. Obviously, a knowledge of crystal networks will allow the prediction of the performance and engineering strategy of silk fibrous materials in generals.
The correlation between the mesoscopic structures and the mechanical properties of silk soft fibrous materials are addressed based on the hierarchical crystal network models. In particular, two types of hierarchical networks are discussed: the weak nanofibril–nanofibril interaction case (silk fibroin hydrogels), and the strong nanofibril–nanofibril interaction case (silk fibers).
Background Application of indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence imaging is effective in guiding laparoscopic radical lymphadenectomy for gastric cancer. However, the optimal approach for indocyanine ...green injection is controversial. Therefore, the objective of this study was aimed to compare the efficacy and ICG injection between the preoperative submucosal and intraoperative subserosal approaches for lymph node (LN) tracing during laparoscopic gastrectomy. Method This randomized controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04219332) included 266 patients with potentially resectable gastric cancer (cT1-T4a, N0/+, M0) enrolled from a tertiary teaching center between December 2019 and October 2020. The primary endpoint was total number of retrieved LNs. Results In total, 259 patients (n = 130 and n = 129 in the submucosal and subserosal groups, respectively) were included in the per-protocol analysis. There are no significant differences in total number of retrieved LNs between the two groups (49.8 vs. 49.2, P = 0.713). The rate of LN noncompliance in the submucosal group was comparable to that in the subserosal group (32.3% vs. 33.3%, P = 0.860). No significant difference was found between the submucosal and subserosal groups in terms of the incidence (17.7% vs. 16.3%; P = 0.762) or severity of postoperative complications. The mean fluorescence cost in the submucosal group was higher than that in the subserosal group ($335.3 vs. $182.4; P < 0.001). The overall treatment satisfaction score was lower in the submucosal group than in the subserosal group (70.5 vs. 76.1%, P = 0.048). Conclusion ICG administered by subserosal injection was comparable to that administered by submucosal injection for lymph node tracing in gastric cancer. However, the former approach imposed a lower economic and mental burden on patients undergoing laparoscopic D2 lymphadenectomy. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04219332. Keywords: Gastric cancer, Indocyanine green, Submucosal approach, Subserosal approach, Lymphadenectomy
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Glucosinolates are token stimuli in host selection of many crucifer specialist insects, but the underlying molecular basis for host selection in these insects remains enigmatic. Using a combination ...of behavioral, electrophysiological, and molecular methods, we investigate glucosinolate receptors in the cabbage butterfly Pieris rapae. Sinigrin, as a potent feeding stimulant, elicited activity in larval maxillary lateral sensilla styloconica, as well as in adult medial tarsal sensilla. Two P. rapae gustatory receptor genes PrapGr28 and PrapGr15 were identified with high expression in female tarsi, and the subsequent functional analyses showed that Xenopus oocytes only expressing PrapGr28 had specific responses to sinigrin; when ectopically expressed in Drosophila sugar sensing neurons, PrapGr28 conferred sinigrin sensitivity to these neurons. RNA interference experiments further showed that knockdown of PrapGr28 reduced the sensitivity of adult medial tarsal sensilla to sinigrin. Taken together, we conclude that PrapGr28 is a gustatory receptor tuned to sinigrin in P. rapae, which paves the way for revealing the molecular basis of the relationships between crucifer plants and their specialist insects.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Male moths possess highly sensitive and selective olfactory systems that detect sex pheromones produced by their females. Pheromone receptors (PRs) play a key role in this process. The PR HassOr14b ...is found to be tuned to (
)-9-hexadecenal, the major sex-pheromone component, in
. HassOr14b is co-localized with HassOr6 or HassOr16 in two olfactory sensory neurons within the same sensilla. As HarmOr14b, the ortholog of HassOr14b in the closely related species
, is tuned to another chemical (
)-9-tetradecenal, we study the amino acid residues that determine their ligand selectivity. Two amino acids located in the transmembrane domains F232I and T355I together determine the functional difference between the two orthologs. We conclude that species-specific changes in the tuning specificity of the PRs in the two
moth species could be achieved with just a few amino acid substitutions, which provides new insights into the evolution of closely related moth species.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Orphan nuclear receptor Nur77, which is low expressed in HCC, functions as a tumor suppressor to ...suppress HCC. However, the detailed mechanism is still not well understood. Here, we demonstrate that Nur77 could inhibit HCC development via transcriptional activation of the lncRNA WAP four-disulfide core domain 21 pseudogene (WFDC21P). Nur77 binds to its response elements on the WFDC21P promoter to directly induce WFDC21P transcription, which inhibits HCC cell proliferation, tumor growth, and tumor metastasis both in vitro and in vivo. In clinical HCC samples, WFDC21P expression positively correlated with that of Nur77, and the loss of WFDC21P is associated with worse prognosis. Mechanistically, WFDC21P could inhibit glycolysis by simultaneously interacting with PFKP and PKM2, two key enzymes in glycolysis. These interactions not only abrogate the tetramer formation of PFKP to impede its catalytic activity but also prevent the nuclear translocation of PKM2 to suppress its function as a transcriptional coactivator. Cytosporone-B (Csn-B), an agonist for Nur77, could stimulate WFDC21P expression and suppress HCC in a WFDC21P-dependent manner. Therefore, our study reveals a new HCC suppressor and connects the glycolytic remodeling of HCC with the Nur77-WFDC21P-PFKP/PKM2 axis.
A simple and facile method was developed to prepare fluorescent carbon nanocrystals (CNCs) with low cytotoxicity and no photobleaching, by electrooxidation of graphite in aqueous solution.
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