Excessive use of agro-chemicals （such as mineral fertilizers） poses potential risks to soil quality. Application of organic amendments and reduction of inorganic fertilizer are economically feasible ...and environmentally sound approaches to de- velop sustainable agriculture. This study investigated and evaluated the effects of mineral fertilizer reduction and partial substitution of organic amendment on soil fertility and heavy metal content in a 10-season continually planted vegetable field during 2009-2012. The experiment included four treatments： 100% chemical fertilizer （CF100）, 80% chemical fertilizer （CF80）, 60% chemical fertilizer and 20% organic fertilizer （CF60＋OM20）, and 40% chemical fertilizer and 40% organic fertilizer （CF40＋OM40）. Soil nutrients, enzyme activity and heavy metal content were determined. The results showed that single chemical fertilizer reduction （CF80） had no significant effect on soil organic matter content, soil catalase activity and soil heavy metal content, but slightly reduced soil available N, P, K, and soil urease activity, and significantly reduced soil acid phosphatase activity. Compared with CF100, 40 or 60% reduction of chemical fertilizer supplemented with organic fertilizer （CF60＋OM20, CF40＋OM40） significantly increased soil organic matter, soil catalase activity and urease activity especially in last several seasons, but reduced soil available P, K, and soil acid phosphatase activity. In addition, continu- ous application of organic fertilizer resulted in higher accumulation of Zn, Cd, and Cr in soil in the late stage of experiment, which may induce adverse effects on soil health and food safety.
The World Health Organization has declared SARS-CoV-2 virus outbreak a worldwide pandemic. However, there is very limited understanding on the immune responses, especially adaptive immune responses ...to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here, we collected blood from COVID-19 patients who have recently become virus-free, and therefore were discharged, and detected SARS-CoV-2-specific humoral and cellular immunity in eight newly discharged patients. Follow-up analysis on another cohort of six patients 2 weeks post discharge also revealed high titers of immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies. In all 14 patients tested, 13 displayed serum-neutralizing activities in a pseudotype entry assay. Notably, there was a strong correlation between neutralization antibody titers and the numbers of virus-specific T cells. Our work provides a basis for further analysis of protective immunity to SARS-CoV-2, and understanding the pathogenesis of COVID-19, especially in the severe cases. It also has implications in developing an effective vaccine to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
•SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies are detected in COVID-19 convalescent subjects•Most COVID-19 convalescent individuals have detectable neutralizing antibodies•Cellular immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 are found in COVID-19 convalescent subjects•Neutralization antibody titers correlate with the numbers of virus-specific T cells.
In blood samples from COVID-19 convalescent subjects, Ni et al. have detected SARS-CoV-2-specific humoral and cellular immunity. Most subjects display serum neutralizing activities, which correlate with the numbers of virus-specific T cells.
Epidithiodioxopiperazine (ETP) alkaloids, featuring a 2,5‐diketopiperazine core and transannular disulfide bridge, exhibit a broad spectrum of biological activities. However, the structural ...complexity has prevented efficient chemical synthesis and further clinical research. In the past few decades, many achievements have been made in the biosynthesis of ETPs. Here, we discuss the biosynthetic progress and summarize them as two comprehensible metabolic principles for better understanding the complex pathways of α, α′‐ and α, β′‐disulfide bridged ETPs. Specifically, we systematically outline the catalytic machineries to install α, α′‐ and α, β′‐disulfide by flavin‐containing oxygenases. This concept would contribute to the medical and industrial applications of ETPs.
Epidithiodioxopiperazines (ETPs) alkaloids possess complex structures and exhibit a broad spectrum of biological activities. In this concept, we summarize the biosynthesis of α, α′‐ and α, β′‐disulfide bridged ETPs and outline the catalytic machineries for the transannular disulfide construction. This will facilitate the medical and industrial applications of ETPs.
High‐resolution present‐day earth surface deformation maps from satellites provide important data constraints, which help us better understand tectonic processes and analyze seismic hazards. Here, we ...use Sentinel‐1 Radar images (2014–2020) and accurate positioning measurements (2009–2019) to get a high‐resolution three‐dimensional earth surface velocity map for the northeastern Tibetan Plateau, and we invert the slip rate and coupling ratio of major regional faults. We find ∼4 mm/yr uplift along an arc from the Qilianshan to Lajishan, relative to the neighboring low‐elevation area to the east, which indicates ongoing rapid orogeny. We find transient deformation along the Laohushan and 1920 M8.5 Haiyuan rupture segments of the Haiyuan fault, whereas the western Haiyuan, southern Liupanshan, central Lajishan and central‐western West Qinling faults are essentially locked above 15–20 km, suggesting a potentially high seismic hazard.
Plain Language Summary
The northeast Tibetan Plateau, which is impeded by the tectonically stable Ordos block, continues to grow in response to the far‐field India‐Eurasia collision. This region has several large‐scale active faults that hosted some destructive earthquakes in the last 100 years. Although intensively studied, the fault kinematics of those seismogenic faults are still not clear, mainly because of poor observational constraints. Hence, high‐resolution present‐day deformation maps are essential to answering this question, either of scientific or societal concern. We provide satellite‐based ground deformation rate maps with mm‐accuracy for this region. They show shallow fault creep along some segments of the Haiyuan fault which is better constrained than previous results, active tectonic uplift in the Lajishan. Our work gives new constraints for the seismic hazard for the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau case.
Key Points
We derive a new high‐resolution three‐dimensional present‐day deformation map for the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau
Geodetic data reveals ongoing rapid uplift along an accurate orogenic belt from the eastern Qilianshan and Lajishan
New constraints for the seismic hazard analysis for the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau
Synaptic pruning during adolescence is important for appropriate neurodevelopment and synaptic plasticity. Aberrant synaptic pruning may underlie a variety of brain disorders such as schizophrenia, ...autism and anxiety. Dopamine D2 receptor (Drd2) is associated with several neuropsychiatric diseases and is the target of some antipsychotic drugs. Here we generate self-reporting Drd2 heterozygous (SR-Drd2
) rats to simultaneously visualize Drd2-positive neurons and downregulate Drd2 expression. Time course studies on the developing anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) from control and SR-Drd2
rats reveal important roles of Drd2 in regulating synaptic pruning rather than synapse formation. Drd2 also regulates LTD, a form of synaptic plasticity which includes some similar cellular/biochemical processes as synaptic pruning. We further demonstrate that Drd2 regulates synaptic pruning via cell-autonomous mechanisms involving activation of mTOR signaling. Deficits of Drd2-mediated synaptic pruning in the ACC during adolescence lead to hyper-glutamatergic function and anxiety-like behaviors in adulthood. Taken together, our results demonstrate important roles of Drd2 in cortical synaptic pruning.
The integration of inaccurate remotely operated vehicle (ROV) model data obtained by computational fluid dynamics for control is presented. Since the ROV is highly nonlinear and uncertain, a ...sliding-mode control (SMC) system using a direction-based genetic algorithm (GA) and fuzzy inference mechanism is proposed. The GA influences the right evolutionary step and direction of the SMC parameters subjected to uncertainties in the evolutionary process. The effectiveness of reducing the sensitivity of the proposed control scheme to model parameters and external disturbance is verified by simulations and sea trial. The results demonstrate that the proposed controller performed better with less chattering in position responses than SMC without GA-fuzzy optimization, fuzzy logic controller, and proportional-integral derivative.
Hybrid optical access networks, integrating fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and radio-over-fiber (RoF) systems that share a single distributed infrastructure, are promising for future multiservice access ...networks. The primary concern is to enable RoF and FTTH systems to transmit both radio-frequency (RF) and baseband (BB) signals on a single wavelength over a single fiber. This study experimentally demonstrates simultaneous generation and transmission of a wired-line BB signal and a wireless RF signal on a single wavelength, using one external modulator. The hybrid signals transmitted over standard single-mode fiber (SSMF) do not suffer from periodic performance fading due to fiber dispersion. Following transmission over 50-km SSMF, the power penalties of both RF and BB signals are less than 0.2 dB
According to the traditional scenario for core-collapse supernovae, the core of the collapsing star forms a neutron star (NS) and its gravitational energy release sends out a shock wave into the ...stellar envelope. However, in a significant number of numerical simulations, the shock stalls and the star cannot be exploded successfully, especially for a massive, compact star. We consider an alternative scenario in which, with mass fallback, the collapsing star forms a black hole in the center, surrounded by a dense, hot accretion disk, which blows out an intense outflow (wind). The kinetic energy of the wind may result in a successful stellar explosion. With an improved version of the formalism in Kohri et al., who studied NS accretion of minor fallback, we study this disk wind-driven explosion by calculating the accretion history for a suite of pre-SN stellar models with different initial surface rotational velocities, masses and metallicities, and by comparing the disk wind energy with the binding energy of the infalling stellar envelope. We show that the most promising models to be exploded successfully by this new channel are those relatively compact pre-SN stars with relatively low metallicities and not too low specific angular momenta. The total energies of the explosions are ∼1051-52 erg, and a more massive progenitor may produce a more energetic explosion.
The diverse biological effects of nanomaterials form the basis for their applications in biomedicine but also cause safety issues. Induction of autophagy is a cellular response after nanoparticles ...exposure. It may be beneficial in some circumstances, yet autophagy‐mediated toxicity raises an alarming concern. Previously, it has been reported that upconversion nanoparticles (UCNs) elicit liver damage, with autophagy contributing most of this toxicity. However, the detailed mechanism is unclear. This study reveals persistent presence of enlarged autolysosomes in hepatocytes after exposure to UCNs and SiO2 nanoparticles both in vitro and in vivo. This phenomenon is due to anomaly in the autophagy termination process named autophagic lysosome reformation (ALR). Phosphatidylinositol 4‐phosphate (PI(4)P) relocates onto autolysosome membrane, which is a key event of ALR. PI(4)P is then converted into phosphatidylinositol 4,5‐bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2) by phosphatidylinositol‐4‐phosphate 5‐kinase. Clathrin is subsequently recruited by PI(4,5)P2 and leads to tubule budding of ALR. Yet it is observed that PI(4)P cannot be converted in nanoparticle‐treated hepatocytes cells. Exogenous supplement of PI(4,5)P2 suppresses the enlarged autolysosomes in vitro. Abolishment of these enlarged autolysosomes by autophagy inhibitor relieves the hepatotoxicity of UCNs in vivo. The results provide evidence for disrupted ALR in nanoparticle‐treated hepatocytes, suggesting that the termination of nanoparticle‐induced autophagy is of equal importance as the initiation.
In hepatocytes treated with upconversion nanoparticles (UCN) or nano‐SiO2, loss of phosphatidylinositol‐4‐phosphate 5‐kinase causes the disrupted phospholipid transition from phosphatidylinositol 4‐phosphate to phosphatidylinositol 4,5‐bisphosphate on enlarged autolysosomal membrane and clathrin fails to be recruited to autolysosomes; autophagic lysosome reformation is blocked, leading to enlarged autolysosomes. In the UCN‐treated mice liver, manipulation of autophagy by 3‐methyladenine or trehalose affects liver damage.
Voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channels initiate and propagate action potentials. Here, we present the cryo-EM structure of EeNav1.4, the Nav channel from electric eel, in complex with the β1 subunit at ...4.0 Å resolution. The immunoglobulin domain of β1 docks onto the extracellular L5I and L6IV loops of EeNav1.4 via extensive polar interactions, and the single transmembrane helix interacts with the third voltage-sensing domain (VSDIII). The VSDs exhibit “up” conformations, while the intracellular gate of the pore domain is kept open by a digitonin-like molecule. Structural comparison with closed NavPaS shows that the outward transfer of gating charges is coupled to the iris-like pore domain dilation through intricate force transmissions involving multiple channel segments. The IFM fast inactivation motif on the III-IV linker is plugged into the corner enclosed by the outer S4-S5 and inner S6 segments in repeats III and IV, suggesting a potential allosteric blocking mechanism for fast inactivation.
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•4.0 Å structure of the Nav1.4-β1 complex from electric eel with an open pore•β1 interacts with the extracellular loops and the third voltage sensor of EeNav1.4•The resolved voltage sensors in repeats III and IV both exhibit “up” conformations•A potential allosteric blocking mechanism for fast inactivation of Nav channels
Structural analysis of the eel Nav1.4 channel offers insights into the electromechanical coupling mechanism of voltage-gated sodium channels.
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