The larvicidal activity of the crude petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, acetone, chloroform and ethanol extracts of Amorpha fruticosa seeds was individually assayed for toxicity against the early ...fourth-instar larva of the mosquito, Culex pipiens pallens after 24 h exposure. Of the tested extracts, the ethanol one exhibited the highest larvicidal activity (LC50 = 22.69 mg/L). Amorphigenin (8'-hydroxyrotenone), a rotenoid compound which exhibits a strong larvicidal activity with LC50 and LC90 values of 4.29 and 11.27 mg/L, respectively, was isolated from the ethanol extract by column chromatograpy. Its structure was elucidated by 1H-NMR, UV and IR spectral data. Furthermore, investigation of amorphigenin's effects on mitochondrial complex I activity and protein synthesis in C. pipiens pallens larvae reveals that amorphigenin decreases mitochondrial complex I activities to 65.73% at 10.45 μmol/L, compared to the control, when NADH were used as the substrate. Meanwhile, amorphigenin at 10.45 μmol/L also caused a 1.98-fold decrease in protein content, compared to the control larvae treated with acetone only.
The initial signal that governs sex determination is highly variable among insects. A homolog of Nix, the male-determining factor in Aedes aegypti, was previously found in the Asian tiger mosquito ...Ae. albopictus. Here we show that the Ae. albopictus Nix (AalNix) is more complex in gene structure and splice isoforms than its Ae. aegypti homolog (AaeNix). AalNix shows a similar transcription profile compared to AaeNix. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockouts of AalNix in vivo and in the Ae. albopictus C6/36 cells lead to a shift of dsx and fru splicing towards the female isoforms. G0 knockout males showed feminization and deformities including feminized antennae, absence or partial absence of gonocoxites, gonostyli, testes and accessory glands, and the formation of ovaries. Despite ~70 MY of divergence, Nix functions as a conserved male-determining factor in the two most important arboviral vectors, namely Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus.
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•The complex structure of the Aedes albopictus Nix (AalNix) gene and its early embryonic transcription have been determined.•Knockout of AalNix promotes the alternative splicing of the female isoforms of dsx (dsxF) and fru (fruF) in C6/36 cells.•Somatic knockout of AalNix results in feminization of males and alters dsx and fru splicing in Aedes albopictus.
The calcium precipitation activity (CPA) of bacterial strains can vary in response to shifts in ambient conditions. When these conditions become unsuitable, the CPA of bacterial cells may decrease ...noticeably, potentially compromising the self-healing process. Nonetheless, the synergistic behavior of various bacterial strains can present additional crystallization sites for calcium precipitation and adapt to diverse ambient conditions, thus enhancing microbial-induced calcium precipitation (MICP). In this article, we delve into the interconnected mechanisms involving forty-one bacterial strains, assessing their initial spore concentration ratios and nutritional needs in relation to CPA. Based on CPA considerations, DSM6307 and B6, were selected and combined. Subsequent investigations were carried out to determine the efficacy of self-healing concrete exposed to co-cultured bacterial strains. The mineralization capacity of these combined strains was bolstered using starch and ammonium nitrate as carbon/nitrogen sources, with the ideal initial spore concentration ratio between B6 and DSM6307 established as 4:6. Through visual assessments confirmed that the synergistic effect of B6-DSM6307 can yield repair efficiencies nearing 100% for crack widths between 0.02 mm and 0.2 mm. Furthermore, water permeability and capillary absorption tests on the sample block demonstrated that the repair compound, derived from the composite spore dry powder B6-DSM6307, effectively seals cracks and binds securely. A microstructural evaluation using scanning electron microscope emphasized the prominent presence of calcite crystals, attributed to the metabolic actions of the introduced composite strains within the cracks. The findings presented in this research pave the way for subsequent studies focusing on the incorporation of co-culture bacterial strains into CPA-based engineering strategies.
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•Synergetic effects of novel bacterial strains to achieve self-healing in concretes was investigated.•Forty-one bacterial strains, their initial spore ratio, and nutrimental demands on self-healing efficiency of concrete was tested.•Water permeability rate and capillary water absorption of test block verify the efficient healing of cracks (100% under crack width of 0.02–0.2 mm).•A series of evidence has advocated the effectiveness of self-healing concrete exposed to B6-DSM6307 bacterial strains.
Abstract Raising the cutoff voltage can efficiently increase the energy density of lithium cobalt oxide (LCO). However, upon charging over 4.55 V the LCO undergoes irreversible phase transition from ...the pristine O3 phase to the metastable H1‐3 phases, causing serious side reactions, which results in poor cycling stability. Herein, a multifunctional aqueous composite binder derived from the cross‐linking of fucoidan (FUC) and polyacrylamide (PAM) is developed to enhance the stability of LCO cathode at 4.6 V. The cross‐linking interaction of FUC and PAM provides a uniform coating on the surface of LCO and ensures a high peel strength for the electrode, effectively mitigating irreversible phase transition and detrimental interface side reactions. More importantly, the sulfur ester and amide groups of FUC‐PAM favorably function as surface charge compensators to the high valent Co upon charging under high voltages, thus stabilizes the surface lattice of LCO and suppresses the detrimental oxygen release. As expected, the LCO with a cutoff voltage of 4.6 V exhibits a high capacity retention of 90% after 100 cycles at a current density of 110 mA g −1 . The interfacial coordination effect of composite binders offers a novel strategy to enhance the stability of high‐voltage LCO for high‐energy lithium‐ion batteries.
ABSTRACT
Skeletal muscle is an important and complex organ with a variety of functions in humans and animals. Skeletal myogenesis is a multistep and complex process, and increasing evidence suggests ...that microRNAs (miRNAs) and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play critical roles in skeletal myogenesis. In this study the expression of miR‐351‐5p is dynamically regulated during skeletal myogenesis in vitro and in vivo. Cell‐counting kit‐8, qRT‐PCR, and EdU immunofluorescence analysis showed that miR‐351‐5p overexpression promoted the proliferation and inhibited the differentiation of C2C12 myoblast, whereas inhibition of miR‐351‐5p had the opposite effect. In addition, miR‐351‐5p mediated the regulation of muscle fiber type transition in vivo. In vitro, loss of miR‐351‐5p in muscle tissues promoted muscle hypertrophy and increased slow‐twitch fibers in the gastrocnemius muscles of mice. Luciferase reporter assay and functional analyses demonstrated that lactamase β (LACTB) is a direct target of miR‐351‐5p involved in the regulation of skeletal myogenesis. Expression levels of a myogenesis‐associated lncRNA (lnc‐mg) correlated negatively with miR‐351‐5p and positively with LACTB during C2C12 myoblast proliferation and differentiation. Further analyses showed that lnc‐mg acted as a molecular sponge for miR‐351‐5p, demonstrating its involvement in the negative regulation of LACTB by miR‐351‐5p during skeletal myogenesis. These findings indicate that miRNA‐351‐5p functions in skeletal myogenesis by targeting LACTB and is regulated by lnc‐mg, supporting the role of the competing endogenous RNA network in skeletal myogenesis.—Du, J., Zhang, P., Zhao, X., He, J., Xu, Y., Zou, Q., Luo, J., Shen, L., Gu, H., Tang, Q., Li, M., Jiang, Y., Tang, G., Bai, L., Li, X., Wang, J., Zhang, S., Zhu, L. MicroRNA‐351‐5p mediates skeletal myogenesis by directly targeting lactamase β and is regulated by lnc‐mg. FASEB J. 33, 1911–1926 (2019). www.fasebj.org
Despite the extensive study of MYCN-amplified neuroblastomas, there is a significant unmet clinical need in MYCN non-amplified cases. In particular, the extent of heterogeneity within the MYCN ...non-amplified population is unknown.
A total of 1566 samples from 16 datasets were identified in Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and ArrayExpress. Characterisation of the subtypes was analysed by ConsensusClusterPlus. Independent predictors for subgrouping were constructed from the single sample predictor based on the multiclassPairs package. Findings were verified using immunohistochemistry and CIBERSORTx analysis.
We demonstrate that MYCN non-amplified neuroblastomas are heterogeneous and can be classified into 3 subgroups based on their transcriptional signatures. Within these groups, subgroup_2 has the worst prognosis and this group shows a 'MYCN' signature that is potentially induced by the overexpression of Aurora Kinase A (AURKA); whilst subgroup_3 is characterised by an 'inflamed' gene signature. The clinical implications of this subtype classification are significant, as each subtype demonstrates a unique prognosis and vulnerability to investigational therapies. A total of 420 genes were identified as independent subgroup predictors with average balanced accuracy of 0.93 and 0.84 for train and test datasets, respectively.
We propose that transcriptional subtyping may enhance precision prognosis and therapy stratification for patients with MYCN non-amplified neuroblastomas.
Although international female students accounted for 44% of the enrolled international students in the United States (U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Student and Exchange Visitor Information ...System, 2020), their experiences regarding their ethnic name are relatively understudied in the onomastic literature. This study considers the experiences of eight international female graduate students of Color who are studying at a Midwestern predominantly White university. Utilizing critical race theory (CRT) and critical race feminism (CRF) as the theoretical and analytical lenses, this qualitative phenomenological study collected data through semistructured, in-depth interviews. We explore the meaning of ethnic names and their connection to participants' multidimensional identities. The findings include experiences with microaggressions, discrimination, and racism among students in relation to their ethnic name and point to underlying factors. Finally, implications are offered for students, faculty members, and administrators to build authentically inclusive and equitable learning communities more effectively.
Mosquito densoviruses (MDVs) are mosquito-specific viruses that are recommended as mosquito bio-control agents. The MDV
densovirus (AeDNV) is a good candidate for controlling mosquitoes. However, the ...slow activity restricts their widespread use for vector control. In this study, we introduced the
(
) toxin Cry11Aa domain II loop α8 and Cyt1Aa loop β6-αE peptides into the AeDNV genome to improve its mosquitocidal efficiency; protein expression was confirmed using nanoscale liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (nano LC-MS/MS). Recombinant plasmids were transfected into mosquito C6/36 cell lines, and the expression of specific peptides was detected through RT-PCR. A toxicity bioassay against the first instar
larvae revealed that the pathogenic activity of recombinant AeDNV was significantly higher and faster than the wild-type (
) viruses, and mortality increased in a dose-dependent manner. The recombinant viruses were genetically stable and displayed growth phenotype and virus proliferation ability, similar to wild-type AeDNV. Our novel results offer further insights by combining two mosquitocidal pathogens to improve viral toxicity for mosquito control.
is the sole vector for various mosquito-borne viruses, including dengue, chikungunya, and Zika. Ecofriendly biological agents are required to reduce the spread of these mosquito-borne infections. ...Mosquito densoviruses (MDVs) are entomopathogenic mosquito-specific viruses, which can reduce the capacity of isolated vectors and decrease mosquito-borne viral disease transmission. However, their variable pathogenicity restricts their commercial use. In the present study, we developed a series of novel larvicide oil suspensions (denoted
(
) oil,
densovirus (AalDV-5) oil, and a mixture of AalDV-5+
oil), which were tested against
larvae under experimental semi-field and open-field conditions. The effect of AalDV-5 on non-target species was also evaluated. The combined effect of AalDV-5+
was greater than that of individual toxins and was longer lasting and more persistent compared with the laboratory AalDV-5 virus strain. The virus was quantified on a weekly basis by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and was persistently detected in rearing water as well as in dead larvae. Wildtype densovirus is not pathogenic to non-target organisms. The present findings confirm the improved effect of a mixed microbial suspension (AalDV-5+
oil) larvicide against
. The development and testing of these products will enable better control of the vector mosquitoes.
Dengue virus (DENV) is a major public health threat, with Aedes albopictus being the confirmed vector responsible for dengue epidemics in Guangzhou, China. Mosquito densoviruses (MDVs) are pathogenic ...mosquito-specific viruses, and a novel MDV was previously isolated from Ae. albopictus in Guangzhou. This study aims to determine the prevalence of MDVs in wild Ae. albopictus populations and investigate their potential interactions with DENV and impact on vector susceptibility for DENV.
The prevalence of MDV in wild mosquitoes in China was investigated using open access sequencing data and PCR detection in Ae. albopictus in Guangzhou. The viral infection rate and titers in MDV-persistent C6/36 cells were evaluated at 12, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 h post infection (hpi) by indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and real time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). The midgut infection rate (MIR), dissemination rate (DR), and salivary gland infection rate (SGIR) in various tissues of MDV-infected mosquitoes were detected and quantified at 0, 5, 10, and 15 days post infection (dpi) by RT-PCR and RT-qPCR. The chi-square test evaluated dengue virus serotype 2 (DENV-2) and Aedes aegypti densovirus (AaeDV) infection rates and related indices in mosquitoes, while Tukey's LSD and t-tests compared viral titers in C6/36 cells and tissues over time.
The results revealed a relatively wide distribution of MDVs in Aedes, Culex, and Anopheles mosquitoes in China and an over 68% positive rate. In vitro, significant reductions in DENV-2 titers in supernatant at 120 hpi, and an apparent decrease in DENV-2-positive cells at 96 and 120 hpi were observed. In vivo, DENV-2 in the ovaries and salivary glands was first detected at 10 dpi in both monoinfected and superinfected Ae. albopictus females, while MDV superinfection with DENV-2 suppressed the salivary gland infection rate at 15 dpi. DENV-2 titer in the ovary and salivary glands of Ae. albopictus was reduced in superinfected mosquitoes at 15 dpi.
MDVs is widespread in natural mosquito populations, and replication of DENV-2 is suppressed in MDV-infected Ae. albopictus, thus reducing vector susceptibility to DENV-2. Our study supports the hypothesis that MDVs may contribute to reducing transmission of DENV and provides an alternative strategy for mosquito-transmitted disease control.
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