Superior fast charging is a desirable capability of lithium‐ion batteries, which can make electric vehicles a strong competition to traditional fuel vehicles. However, the slow transport of solvated ...lithium ions in liquid electrolytes is a limiting factor. Here, a LixCu6Sn5 intermetallic network is reported to address this issue. Based on electrochemical analysis and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy mapping, it is demonstrated that the reported intermetallic network can form a high‐speed solid‐state lithium transport matrix throughout the electrode, which largely reduces the lithium‐ion‐concentration polarization effect in the graphite anode. Employing this design, superior fast‐charging graphite/lithium cobalt oxide full cells are fabricated and tested under strict electrode conditions. At the charging rate of 6 C, the fabricated full cells show a capacity of 145 mAh g−1 with an extraordinary capacity retention of 96.6%. In addition, the full cell also exhibits good electrochemical stability at a high charging rate of 2 C over 100 cycles (96.0% of capacity retention) in comparison to traditional graphite‐anode‐based cells (86.1% of capacity retention). This work presents a new strategy for fast‐charging lithium‐ion batteries on the basis of high‐speed solid‐state lithium transport in intermetallic alloy hosts.
A high‐speed solid‐state lithium‐transport matrix throughout the electrode is built up by a LixCu6Sn5 intermetallic network, which largely reduces the polarization effect in the graphite anode and realizes superior fast‐charging graphite/lithium cobalt oxide full cells under strict electrode conditions (areal capacity >3 mAh cm−2, porosity < 35%).
Accumulating evidence supports an important role for the hepatitis B virus x protein (HBx) in the pathogenesis of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the underlying ...mechanisms are not entirely clear. Here, we identified a novel long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) DBH-AS1 involved in the HBx-mediated hepatocarcinogenesis. The levels of DBH-AS1 were positively correlated with hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and tumor size in HCC tissues. Functionally, transgenic expression of DBH-AS1 significantly enhanced cell proliferation and tumorigenesis, whereas short hairpin RNA knockdown of DBH-AS1 caused an inhibition of cell proliferation. Mechanistically, overexpression of DBH-AS1 induced cell cycle progression by accelerating G1/S and G2/M transition concomitantly with upregulation of CDK6, CCND1, CCNE1 and downregulation of p16, p21 and p27. We also found that enhanced DBH-AS1 expression inhibited serum starvation-induced apoptosis of HCC cells. In contrast, suppressed DBH-AS1 expression had opposite effects. Furthermore, DBH-AS1 was shown to activate MAPK pathway. We also provide evidence that DBH-AS1 could be significantly induced by HBx protein and markedly down-regulated by p53. Thus, we concluded that DBH-AS1 can be induced by HBx and inactivated by p53, and consequently promote cell proliferation and cell survival through activation of MAPK signaling in HCC. Our study suggests that DBH-AS1 acts as an oncogene for HCC.
Phytohormones are key regulators of plant growth, development, and signalling networks involved in responses to diverse biotic and abiotic stresses. Transcriptional reference maps of hormone ...responses have been reported for several model plant species such as Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa, and Brachypodium distachyon. However, because of species differences and the complexity of the wheat genome, these transcriptome data are not appropriate reference material for wheat studies.
We comprehensively analysed the transcriptomic responses in wheat spikes to seven phytohormones, including indole acetic acid (IAA), gibberellic acid (GA), abscisic acid (ABA), ethylene (ET), cytokinin (CK), salicylic acid (SA), and methyl jasmonic acid (MeJA). A total of 3386 genes were differentially expressed at 24 h after the hormone treatments. Furthermore, 22.7% of these genes exhibited overlapping transcriptional responses for at least two hormones, implying there is crosstalk among phytohormones. We subsequently identified genes with expression levels that were significantly and differentially induced by a specific phytohormone (i.e., hormone-specific responses). The data for these hormone-responsive genes were then compared with the transcriptome data for wheat spikes exposed to biotic (Fusarium head blight) and abiotic (water deficit) stresses.
Our data were used to develop a transcriptional reference map of hormone responses in wheat spikes.
Aim
miR‐548p is a recently identified and poorly characterized miRNA. However, its role of miR‐548p in tumorigenesis and progression remains poorly understood. Here, we aimed to investigate the ...biofunction of miR‐548p in hepatocellular carcinogenesis.
Methods
The expression levels of miR‐548p were detected by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT–PCR). The role of miR‐548p in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was determined by colony formation, flow cytometry assay and nude mice xenograft experiments. miR‐548p target genes were analyzed by miRNA target predication programs and verified by qRT–PCR, western blotting assay and dual‐luciferase reporter assay.
Results
miR‐548p is repressed by hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) in HCC tumor tissues and hepatoma cells, and inhibited cell growth by inhibiting cell proliferation and promoting cell apoptosis. miR‐548p directly downregulated the expression of hepatitis B x‐interacting protein (HBXIP) by binding to the 3′‐untranslated region of HBXIP mRNA. Further study showed that hepatocyte nuclear factor‐4a (HNF4A) promoted the expression of miR‐548p and inhibited the transcription of HBXIP. HNF4A is a dominant transcriptional regulator of hepatocyte differentiation and hepatocellular carcinogenesis, and is shown to be repressed by HBx.
Conclusion
We proposed the model for HBx/HNF4A/miR‐548p/HBXIP pathway that controls hepatoma cell growth and tumorigenesis of HCC. miR‐548p was identified as a tumor‐suppressor in HBx‐associated hepatocellular carcinogenesis.
High-molecular-weight glutenin subunits (HMW-GSs) are the most critical grain storage proteins that determine the unique processing qualities of wheat. Although it is a part of the superior HMW-GS ...pair (Dx5+Dy10), the contribution of the Dy10 subunit to wheat processing quality remains unclear. In this study, we elucidated the effect of Dy10 on wheat processing quality by generating and analyzing a deletion mutant (with the Dy10-null allele), and by elucidating the changes to wheat flour following the incorporation of purified Dy10. The Dy10-null allele was transcribed normally, but the Dy10 subunit was lacking. These findings implied that the Dy10-null allele reduced the glutenin:gliadin ratio and negatively affected dough strength (i.e., Zeleny sedimentation value, gluten index, and dough development and stability times) and the bread-making quality; however, it positively affected the biscuit-making quality. The incorporation of various amounts of purified Dy10 into wheat flour had a detrimental effect on biscuit-making quality. The results of this study demonstrate that the Dy10 subunit is essential for maintaining wheat dough strength. Furthermore, the Dy10-null allele may be exploited by soft wheat breeding programs.
ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters hydrolyze ATP to transport a wide range of substrates.
is a major causal agent of Fusarium head blight, which is a severe disease in wheat worldwide.
(
) ...encodes an ABC-C (ABC transporter family C) transporter in
, which was highly expressed during the infection in wheat and was up-regulated by the plant defense hormone salicylic acid (SA) and the fungicide tebuconazole. The predicted tertiary structure of the FgABCC9 protein was consistent with the schematic of the ABC exporter. Deletion of
resulted in decreased mycelial growth, increased sensitivity to SA and tebuconazole, reduced accumulation of deoxynivalenol (DON), and less pathogenicity towards wheat. Re-introduction of a functional
gene into Δ
recovered the phenotypes of the wild type strain. Transgenic expression of
in
increased the accumulation of SA in its leaves without activating SA signaling, which suggests that
functions as an SA exporter. Taken together,
encodes an ABC exporter, which is critical for fungal exportation of SA, response to tebuconazole, mycelial growth, and pathogenicity towards wheat.
The spikelet number per spike (SNS) contributes greatly to grain yield in wheat. Identifying various genes that control wheat SNS is vital for yield improvement. This study used a recombinant inbred ...line population genotyped by the Wheat55K single-nucleotide polymorphism array to identify two major and stably expressed quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for SNS. One of them (QSns.sau-2SY-2D.1) was reported previously, while the other (QSns.sau-2SY-7A) was newly detected and further analyzed in this study. QSns.sau-2SY-7A had a high LOD value ranging from 4.46 to 16.00 and explained 10.21–40.78％ of the phenotypic variances. QSns.sau-2SY-7A was flanked by the markers AX-110518554 and AX-110094527 in a 4.75-cM interval on chromosome arm 7AL. The contributions and interactions of both major QTLs were further analyzed and discussed. The effect of QSns.sau-2SY-7A was successfully validated by developing a tightly linked kompetitive allele specific PCR marker in an F2:3 population and a panel of 101 high-generation breeding wheat lines. Furthermore, several genes including the previously reported WHEAT ORTHOLOG OF APO1 (WAPO1), an ortholog of the rice gene ABERRANT PANICLE ORGANIZATION 1 (APO1) related to SNS, were predicted in the interval of QSns.sau-2SY-7A. In summary, these results revealed the genetic basis of the multi-spikelet genotype of wheat line 20828 and will facilitate subsequent fine mapping and breeding utilization of the major QTLs.
QTL Mapping for Important Agronomic Traits in Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat Derived from Aegiliops tauschii ssp. tauschii YU Ma, CHEN Guo-yue, ZHANG Lian-quan, LIU Ya-xi, LIU Deng-cai, WANG Ji-rui, PU Zhien, ZHANG Li, LAN Xiu-jin, WEI Yu-ming, LIU Chun-ji , ZHENG You-liang (National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement/Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, P.R.China)
Journal of Integrative Agriculture,
09/2014, Letnik:
13, Številka:
9
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Aegiliops tauschii is classified into two subspecies： Ae. tauschii ssp. tauschii and Ae. tauschii ssp. strangulata. Novel genetic variations exist in Ae. tauschii ssp. tauschii that can be utilized ...in wheat improvement. We synthesized a hexaploid wheat genotype（SHW-L1） by crossing an Ae. tauschii ssp. tauschii accession（AS60） with a tetraploid wheat genotype（AS2255）. A population consisting of 171 F8 recombinant inbred lines was developed from SHW-L1 and Chuanmai 32 to identify QTLs associated with agronomic traits. A new genetic map with high density was constructed and used to detect the QTLs for heading date, kernel width, spike length, spikelet number, and thousand kernel weight. A total of 30 putative QTLs were identified for five investigated traits. Thirteen QTLs were located on D genomes of SHW-L1, six of them showed positive effect on agronomic traits. Chromosome region flanked by wPt-6133–wPt-8134 on 2D carried five environment-independent QTLs. Each QTL accounted for more than 10% phenotypic variance. These QTLs were highly consistent across environments and should be used in wheat breeding.
Salicylic acid (SA) is a key defense hormone associated with wheat resistance against Fusarium head blight, which is a severe disease mainly caused by
. Although
can metabolize SA, it remains unclear ...how this metabolic activity affects the wheat⁻
interaction. In this study, we identified a salicylate hydroxylase gene (
;
) in
. This gene encodes a protein that catalyzes the conversion of SA to catechol. Additionally, FgNahG was widely distributed within hyphae. Disrupting the
gene (Δ
) led to enhanced sensitivity to SA, increased accumulation of SA in wheat spikes during the early infection stage and inhibited development of head blight symptoms. However,
did not affect mycotoxin production. Re-introducing a functional
gene into the Δ
mutant recovered the wild-type phenotype. Moreover, the expression of
in transgenic
decreased the SA concentration and the resistance of leaves to
. These results indicate that the endogenous SA in wheat influences the resistance against
. Furthermore, the capacity to metabolize SA is an important factor affecting the ability of
to infect wheat plants.
Basis for the effects of nitrogen (N) on wheat grain storage proteins (GSPs) and on the establishment of processing quality are far from clear. The response of GSPs and processing quality parameters ...to four N levels of four common wheat cultivars were investigated at two sites over two growing seasons. Except gluten index (GI), processing quality parameters as well as GSPs quantities were remarkably improved by increasing N level. N level explained 4.2~59.2% and 10.4~80.0% variability in GSPs fractions and processing quality parameters, respectively. The amount of N remobilized from vegetative organs except spike was significantly increased when enhancing N application. GSPs fractions and processing quality parameters except GI were only highly and positively correlated with the amount of N remobilized from stem with sheath. N reassimilation in grain was remarkably strengthened by the elevated activity and expression level of glutamine synthetase. Transcriptome analysis showed the molecular mechanism of seeds in response to N levels during 10~35 days post anthesis. Collectively, we provided comprehensive understanding of N-responding mechanisms with respect to wheat processing quality from N source to GSPs biosynthesis at the agronomic, physiological and molecular levels, and screened candidate genes for quality breeding.
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