Bone disease and disorder treatment might be difficult because of its complicated nature. Millions of patients each year need bone substitutes that may help them recover quickly from a variety of ...illnesses. Synthetic bone replacements that mirror the structural, chemical, and biological features of bone matrix structure will be very helpful and in high demand. In this research, the inorganic bioactive glass nanoparticles matrixed with organic collagen and silk fibroin structure (COL/SF/CaO-SiO2) were used to create multifunctional bone-like fibers in this study, which we describe here. The fiber structure is organized in a layered fashion comparable to the sequence in which apatite and neo tissue are formed. The amino groups in COL and SF combined with CaO-SiO2 to stabilize the resulting composite nanofiber. Morphological and functional studies confirmed that crystalline CaO-SiO2 nanoparticles with average sizes of 20 ± 5 nm are anchored on a 115 ± 10 nm COL/SF nanofiber matrix. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic (XPS) results confirmed the presence of C, N, O, Ca, and Si in the composite fiber with an atomic percentage of 59.46, 3.30, 20.25, 3.38 and 13.61%. respectively. The biocompatibility examination with osteoblast cells (Saos-2) revealed that the CAL/SF/CaO-SiO2 composite nanofiber had enhanced osteogenic activity. Finally, when the CAL/SF/CaO-SiO2 composite nanofiber scaffolds were used to treat an osteoporotic bone defect in a rat model, the composite nanofiber scaffolds significantly promoted bone regeneration and vascularization. This novel fibrous scaffold class represents a potential breakthrough in the design of advanced materials for complicated bone regeneration.
Display omitted
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is rapidly being recognized as the leading cause of chronic liver disease worldwide.
Men1
, encoding protein of menin, is a key causative gene of multiple ...endocrine neoplasia type 1 syndrome including pancreatic tumor. It is known that insulin that secretes by endocrine tissue pancreatic islets plays a critical role in hepatic metabolism. Mouse model of hemizygous deletion of
Men1
was shown to have severe hepatic metabolism disorders. However, the molecular function of menin on lipid deposition in hepatocytes needs to be further studied. Transcriptome sequencing does show that expression suppression of
Men1
in mouse hepatocytes widely affect signaling pathways involved in hepatic metabolism, such as fatty acid metabolism, insulin response, glucose metabolism and inflammation. Further molecular studies indicates that menin overexpression inhibits expressions of the fat synthesis genes
Srebp-1c, Fas,
and
Acc1
, the fat differentiation genes
Pparγ1
and
Pparγ2
, and the fat transport gene
Cd36
, thereby inhibiting the fat accumulation in hepatocytes. The biological process of menin regulating hepatic lipid metabolism was accomplished by interacting with the transcription factor FoxO1, which is also found to be critical for lipid metabolism. Moreover, menin responds to insulin in hepatocytes and mediates its regulatory effect on hepatic metabolism. Our findings suggest that menin is a crucial mediation factor in regulating the hepatic fat deposition, suggesting it could be a potential important therapeutic target for NAFLD.
Mesocotyl elongation is a key trait influencing seedling emergence and establishment in direct-seeding rice cultivation. The phytohormone gibberellin (GA) has positive effects on mesocotyl elongation ...in rice. However, the physiological and molecular basis underlying the regulation of mesocotyl elongation mediated by GA priming under deep-sowing conditions remains largely unclear. In the present study, we performed a physiological and comprehensive transcriptomic analysis of the function of GA priming in mesocotyl elongation and seedling emergence using a direct-seeding
japonica
rice cultivar ZH10 at a 5-cm sowing depth. Physiological experiments indicated that GA priming significantly improved rice seedling emergence by increasing the activity of starch-metabolizing enzymes and compatible solute content to supply the energy essential for subsequent development. Transcriptomic analysis revealed 7074 differentially expressed genes (false discovery rate of <0.05, |log
2
(fold change)| of ⩾1) after GA priming. Furthermore, gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses revealed that genes associated with transcriptional regulation, plant hormone biosynthesis or signaling, and starch and sucrose metabolism were critical for GA-mediated promotion of rice mesocotyl elongation. Further analyses showed that the expression of the transcription factor (TF) genes (v-myb avian myeloblastosis viral oncogene homolog (MYB) alternative splicing 1 (
MYBAS1
), phytochrome-interacting factors 1 (
PIF1
),
Oryza sativa
teosinte branched 1/cycloidea/proliferating cell factor 5 (
OsTCP5
), slender 1 (
SLN1
), and mini zinc finger 1 (
MIF1
)), plant hormone biosynthesis or signaling genes (brassinazole-resistant 1 (
BZR1
), ent-kaurenoic acid oxidase-like (
KAO
), GRETCHEN HAGEN 3.2 (
GH3.2
), and small auxin up RNA 36 (
SAUR36
)), and starch and sucrose metabolism genes (α-amylases (
AMY2A
and
AMY1.4
)) was highly correlated with the mesocotyl elongation and deep-sowing tolerance response. These results enhance our understanding of how nutrient metabolism-related substances and genes regulate rice mesocotyl elongation. This may facilitate future studies on related genes and the development of novel rice varieties tolerant to deep sowing.
Leaf size is an important agronomic trait directly affecting yield in rice, and thus understanding the genes determining leaf size is important in breeding. In this study, one
(
) with small leaf ...size was isolated using ethyl methane sulphonate (EMS) mutagenesis from the
Zhenggeng 1925. MutMap by whole genome resequencing of phenotypic bulks revealed that
is likely located in the 133 kb region on chromosome 7 using F
population from a cross between
and wild-type (WT) Zhenggeng 1925. The candidate gene encoding heat shock protein
for
was functionally validated. Disruption of this gene in
mutants significantly reduced the leaf size compared with that of WT in rice. Microscopic examination showed that
modulated leaf size via regulating the veins formation and cell size/cell number. Nucleotide diversity analysis indicated that a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) variation of C to T in the coding region of
may cause small leaves among rice accessions. Therefore, the natural variation of
contributing to leaf size might be useful for rice breeding.
Abstract
Background
Menin is a scaffold protein encoded by the
Men1
gene, which interacts with various transcriptional proteins to activate or repress cellular processes and is a key mediator in ...multiple organs. Both liver-specific and hepatocyte-specific Menin deficiency promotes high-fat diet-induced liver steatosis in mice, as well as insulin resistance and type 2 diabetic phenotype. The potential link between Menin and hepatic metabolism homeostasis may provide new insights into the mechanism of fatty liver disease.
Results
Disturbance of hepatic Menin expression impacts metabolic pathways associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), including the FoxO signaling pathway, which is similar to that observed in both oleic acid-induced fatty hepatocytes model and biopsied fatty liver tissues, but with elevated hepatic Menin expression and inhibited FABP1. Higher levels of Menin facilitate glucose uptake while restraining fatty acid uptake. Menin targets the expression of FABP3/4/5 and also CD36 or GK, PCK by binding to their promoter regions, while recruiting and deploying the cellular localization of PPARγ and SIRT1 in the nucleus and cytoplasm. Accordingly, Menin binds to PPARγ and/or FoxO1 in hepatocytes, and orchestrates hepatic glucose and fatty acid uptake by recruiting SIRT1.
Conclusion
Menin plays an orchestration role as a transcriptional activator and/or repressor to target downstream gene expression levels involved in hepatic energy uptake by interacting with the cellular energy sensor SIRT1, PPARγ, and/or FoxO1 and deploying their translocations between the cytoplasm and nucleus, thereby maintaining metabolic homeostasis. These findings provide more evidence suggesting Menin could be targeted for the treatment of hepatic steatosis, NAFLD or metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), and even other hepatic diseases.
Graphical Abstract
The textured surfaces to reduce light reflectivity by using acid-alkali chemical etching and SiNx films are generally necessary for commercial crystalline silicon solar cells. However, this etching ...process requires a large amount of environmentally harmful acid-alkali solution and has limited options for texture and size. To overcome these disadvantages, a new anti-reflection strategy is proposed in this study, which is using soft nanoimprint lithography to prepare the textured structures on the outside of the SiNx films. The polyurethane with a high refractive index of 1.64 is selected as the texture material, and different templates are selected to prepare it into different light trapping structures, including positive-inverted pyramids, inverted lace cones, and positive-inverted moth-eye nanostructures allowing for easy customization of the textured structures. The finite element simulation and experiments demonstrate that these light trapping structures have a wide spectrum anti-reflection performance in visible and near-infrared bands. With the back surface of the commercial passivated emitter rear contact (PERC) bi-facial solar cells as the imprint substrates, some light trapping structures can reduce the surface weighted average light reflectivity (Rw) at the band of 300–1200 nm from 18.31% to less than 10% and the optimal structures can reduce Rw to 8.71%. This anti-reflection strategy can also be applied to thin-film solar cells and crystalline silicon solar cells of other structures, such as HIT, Topcon, Perovskite/c-Si tandem, and so forth, which shows great development potential.
Display omitted
•New texture structure design: prepare texture on the outside of flat SiNx film.•Soft nanoimprint lithography facilitates custom texture.•Applying PU can easily adjust the refractive index and imprint various structures.•Texture does not affect the electrical performance of the solar cells.
The molecular events underlying the lactation curve of dairy animals have long been a biological conundrum for mammary biologists, and a cause of a considerable loss of income for dairy farmers. To ...better understand the regulatory mechanisms and developmental processes of the mammary gland during the lactation cycle, whole-genome transcriptome profiles of bovine mammary tissues at five different lactation stages were investigated using the RNA-Seq technique. The differentially expressed genes were identified by comparing different lactation stage combinations. Gene expression changes were validated using quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Some differentially expressed genes were found to locate in the known quantitative trait loci regions that are associated with multiple milk production traits. Proteins of potentially important genes were confirmed to be expressed in the mammary epithelium of dairy cows. An integrated analysis of differential gene expression indicated that internal development regularities underlying the shape of the milk production curve. First, the mammary gland is enriched in similar activities during lactation onset and involution, but in opposite regulatory directions. Second, the lactation stages before and after the milk peak shared similar biological processes that were mainly involved in extracellular matrix remodelling. The discoveries of the study provide information necessary to improve milk production.
Introduction: Evaluated lymph node (ELN) yield has been established as a promising measure of surgical quality. Research has suggested that an ELN of at least 15 in pancreatic cancer patients is ...associated with improved survival and staging metrics. The aim of this study was to determine what impact a high ELN yield of ≥15 has in a novel population. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed of patients with resectable, non-metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma who underwent neoadjuvant therapy followed by pancreatectomy using the National Cancer Database (NCDB 2004-2017). Patients who had <15 nodes examined and those who had ≥15 examined (high ELN) were compared. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine factors associated with ELN yield. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to identify factors associated with overall survival. Results: A total of 5,930 patients were included; 58% of patients had ≥15 lymph nodes examined. High ELN was associated with significant improvement in overall survival rates (p<0.004) and perioperative outcomes including post-operative stay (p<0.0001), 30-day unplanned readmission (p<0.028), and 90-day mortality (p<0.001). Patients who were treated at facilities with a high procedure-specific surgery volume were more likely to receive high ELN surgeries than those treated at facilities with a low volume (HR = 2.8695% CI = 2.36-3.47). Conclusions: An ELN yield of ≥15 was a significant measure of surgical quality in this novel population as it was associated with improvements in survival and perioperative outcomes. However, considerable harvest disparities exist at the facility level.
A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted on 23 serum biochemical traits in Chinese Holstein cattle. The experimental population consisted of 399 cattle, each genotyped by a commercial ...bovine 50K SNP chip, which had 49,663 SNPs. After data cleaning, 41,092 SNPs from 361 Holstein cattle were retained for GWAS. The phenotypes were measured values of serum measurements of these animals that were taken at 11 days after parturition. Two statistical models, a fixed-effect linear regression model (FLM) and a mixed-effect linear model (MLM), were used to estimate the association effects of SNPs. Genome-wide significant and suggestive thresholds were set up to be 1.22E-06 and 2.43E-06, respectively. In the Chinese Holstein population, FLM identified 81 genome-wide significant (0.05/41,092 = 1.22E-06) SNPs associated with 11 serum traits. Among these SNPs, five SNPs (BovineHD0100005950, ARS-BFGL-NGS-115158, BovineHD1500021175, BovineHD0800028900, and BTB-00442438) were also identified by the MLM to have genome-wide suggestive effects on CHE, DBIL, and LDL. Both statistical models pinpointed two SNPs that had significant effects on the Holstein population. The SNP BovineHD0800028900 (located near the gene
on chromosome 8) was identified to be significantly associated with serum high- and low-density lipoprotein (HDL and LDL), whereas BovineHD1500021175 (located in 73.4Mb on chromosome 15) was an SNP significantly associated with total bilirubin and direct bilirubin (TBIL and DBIL). Further analyses are needed to identify the causal mutations affecting serum traits and to investigate the correlation of effects for loci associated with fatty liver disease in dairy cattle.
Purpose: To investigate linkages between circulatory adipogenic and myogenic biomarkers, gluteal intramuscular adipose tissue (IMAT), and pressure injury (PrI) history following spinal cord injury ...(SCI).
Methods: This is an observational repeated-measures study of 30 individuals with SCI. Whole blood was collected regularly over 2-3 years. Circulatory adipogenic and myogenic gene expression was determined. IMAT was defined as above/below 15% (IMATd) or percentage (IMAT%). PrI history was defined as recurrent PrI (RPrI) or PrI number (nPrI). Model development used R packages (version 3.5.1). Univariate analysis screened for discriminating genes for downstream multivariate and combined models of averaged and longitudinal data for binary (RPrI/IMATd) and finer scales (nPrI/IMAT%).
Results: For adipogenesis, Krüppel-like factor 4 was the top RPrI predictor together with resistin and cyclin D1, and sirtuin 2 was the top IMAT predictor. For myogenesis, the top RPrI predictor was dysferlin 2B, and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase-4 was the top IMAT predictor together with dystrophin.
Conclusion: Circulatory adipogenic and myogenic biomarkers have statistically significant relationships with PrI history and IMAT for persons with SCI. Biomarkers of interest may act synergistically or additively. Variable importance rankings can reveal nonlinear correlations among the predictors. Biomarkers of interest may act synergistically or additively, thus multiple genes may need to be included for prediction with finer distinction.
PDF
