Iris laevigata is ideal for gardening and landscaping in northeast China because of its beautiful flowers and strong cold resistance. However, the short length of flowering time (2 days for ...individual flowers) greatly limits its applications. Molecular breeding and engineering hold high potential for producing I. laevigata of desirable flowering properties. A prerequisite is to identify and characterize key flowering control genes, the identity of which remains largely unknown in I. laevigata due to the lack of genome information. To fill this knowledge gap, we used sequencing data of the I. laevigata transcriptome to identify MADS-box gene-encoding transcription factors that have been shown to play key roles in developmental processes, including flowering. Our data revealed 41 putative MADS-box genes, which consisted of 8 type I (5 Mα and 3 Mβ, respectively) and 33 type II members (2 MIKC* and 31 MIKCC, respectively). We then selected IlSEP3 and IlSVP for functional studies and found that both are localized to the nucleus and that they interact physically in vitro. Ectopic expression of IlSEP3 in Arabidopsis resulted in early flowering (32 days) compared to that of control plants (36 days), which could be mediated by modulating the expression of FT, SOC1, AP1, SVP, SPL3, VRN1, and GA20OX. By contrast, plants overexpressing IlSVP were phenotypically similar to that of wild type. Our functional validation of IlSEP3 was consistent with the notion that SEP3 promotes flowering in multiple plant species and indicated that IlSEP3 regulates flowering in I. laevigata. Taken together, this work provided a systematic identification of MADS-box genes in I. laevigata and demonstrated that the flowering time of I. laevigata can be genetically controlled by altering the expression of key MADS-box genes.
The number of chronic respiratory disease (CRD) individuals worldwide has been continuously increasing. Numerous studies have shown that greenness can improve chronic respiratory health issues ...through different mechanisms, with inconsistent evidence. By quantitatively summarizing existing studies, our purpose is to determine the connection between greenness exposure and various chronic respiratory health.
We conducted a comprehensive search on PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science core databases to identify relevant studies on the correlation between greenness exposure and chronic respiratory health issues. Studies published up to January 2023 were included in the search. The study used the most frequent indicator (normalized difference vegetation index NDVI) as the definition of greenness exposure.
We finally identified 35 studies for meta-analysis. We calculated pooled effects across studies using a random-effects model and conducted a subgroup analysis by age and buffer zones to discuss the effects on chronic respiratory health issues. This study showed that 0.1 increments in NDVI were significantly related to lower rates of asthma incidence, lung cancer incidence, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) mortality risk; the pooled RRs were 0.92 (95% CI: 0.85-0.98), 0.62 (95% CI: 0.40-0.95), and 0.95 (95% CI: 0.92- 0.99), respectively. For the age subgroup, the higher greenness exposure level was related to the incidence rate of asthma among teenagers aged 13-18years (RR: 0.91; 95% CI: 0.83-0.99). For the buffer subgroup, a positive relationship with greenness exposure and asthma incidence/prevalence at 200-300m and 800- 1000m buffers, as well as the COPD mortality at 800-1000m buffer, the pooled RRs were 0.92 (95% CI: 0.86-0.98), 0.87 (95% CI: 0.81-0.93), and 0.93 (95% CI: 0.88- 0.98), respectively. Evidence of publication bias was not detected in this study.
Our study is the first global meta-analysis between greenness and various CRDs to report an inverse association. Further research is needed in order to determine the effect of greenness exposure on different CRDs. Therefore, when planning for green development, more consideration must be given to public health and green management as intervention measures.
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPEROFILES/384029_STRATEGY_20230116.pdf.
Glucocorticoids and sclerostin act as inhibitors of the Wnt signaling pathway, thereby hindering bone formation. Given the pathway's intricate association with mesenchymal stem cells, the hypothesis ...suggests that heightened sclerostin levels may be intricately linked to an augmentation in marrow adiposity induced by glucocorticoids. This study endeavored to delve into the nuanced relationship between circulating sclerostin and bone marrow adipose tissue in postmenopausal women grappling with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO).
In this cross-sectional study, 103 patients with autoimmune-associated diseases underwent glucocorticoid treatment, boasting an average age of 61.3 years (standard deviation 7.1 years). The investigation encompassed a thorough assessment, incorporating medical history, anthropometric data, biochemical analysis, and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry measurements of lumbar and femoral bone mineral density (BMD). Osteoporosis criteria were established at a T-score of -2.5 or lower. Additionally, MR spectroscopy quantified the vertebral marrow fat fraction.
BMD at the femoral neck, total hip, and lumbar spine showcased an inverse correlation with marrow fat fraction (r = -0.511 to - 0.647, P < 0.001). Serum sclerostin levels exhibited a positive correlation with BMD at various skeletal sites (r = 0.476 to 0.589, P < 0.001). A noteworthy correlation emerged between circulating sclerostin and marrow fat fraction at the lumbar spine (r = -0.731, 95% CI, -0.810 to -0.627, P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis brought to light that vertebral marrow fat fraction significantly contributed to sclerostin serum concentrations (standardized regression coefficient ß = 0.462, P < 0.001). Even after adjusting for age, body mass index, physical activity, renal function, BMD, and the duration and doses of glucocorticoid treatment, serum sclerostin levels maintained a significant correlation with marrow fat fraction.
Circulating sclerostin levels exhibited a noteworthy association with marrow adiposity in postmenopausal women grappling with GIO.
Lipid oxidation and hypoxia can lead to oxidative damage in aquatic animals. This study explored the effects of Scoparia dulcis extracts (SDE) on lipid oxidation, fish growth performance, digestive ...ability, antioxidant capacity, and hypoxia tolerance ability. The results showed that SDE decreased malonaldehyde (MDA), conjugated diene (CD), and peroxide value (PO) in the linoleic acid and linolenic acid as well as in fish feed. Broken-line analysis revealed that the optimal acetone extract of S. dulcis (AE) supplements was 4.02, 4.01, and 4.01 g kg−1 determined from PO, CD, and MDA, respectively. Dietary AE supplementation increased feed intake and specific growth rate and activities of amylase, trypsin, and lipase as well as alkaline phosphatase in fish hepatopancreas and gut. Polynomial regression analysis showed that optimal dietary AE supplement was 3.61 g kg−1 diet determined from weight gain. Furthermore, dietary AE supplementation decreased MDA content and increased glutathione content and the activities of glutathione peroxidase, catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione reductase in fish digestive organs, gills, erythrocytes, and muscle. Dietary AE supplementation increased durative time (DT) and oxygen consumption rate (OCR) under hypoxia condition. Based on polynomial regression analysis, optimal dietary AE supplements were 4.73 and 4.60 g kg−1 diet determined from DT and OCR for hypoxia tolerance in fish, respectively. According to our current research, SDE’s antioxidant capacity may be attribute to their phenolic chemicals.
Number connection test A (NCT-A) and digit symbol test (DST), the preferential neuropsychological tests to detect minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) in China, haven't been standardized in Chinese ...population. We aimed to establish the norms based on a multi-center cross-sectional study and to detect MHE in cirrhotic patients. NCT-A and DST were administered to 648 healthy controls and 1665 cirrhotic patients. The regression-based procedure was applied to develop demographically adjusted norms for NCT-A and DST based on healthy controls. Age, gender, education, and age by education interaction were all predictors of DST, while age, gender, and education by gender interaction were predictors of log
NCT-A. The predictive equations for expected scores of NCT-A and DST were established, and Z-scores were calculated. The norm for NCT-A was set as Z ≤ 1.64, while the norm for DST was set as Z ≥ - 1.64. Cirrhotic patients with concurrent abnormal NCT-A and DST results were diagnosed with MHE. The prevalence of MHE was 8.89% in cirrhotic patients, and only worse Child-Pugh classification (P = 0.002, OR = 2.389) was demonstrated to be the risk factor for MHE. The regression-based normative data of NCT-A and DST have been developed to detect MHE in China. A significant proportion of Chinese cirrhotic patients suffered from MHE, especially those with worse Child-Pugh classification.
Polyol esters of fatty acids (PEFA) are a kind of promising biosurfactants and mainly secreted by Rhodotorula strains. In addition, some strains of Rhodotorula are reliable producers of microbial ...lipid. Therefore, it is feasible to establish a one step fermentation process for efficient simultaneous production of PEFA and microbial lipids by a suitable Rhodotorula strain.
A newly isolated deep-sea yeast, Rhodotorula paludigena P4R5, was shown to simultaneously produce high level of intracellular lipid and extracellular PEFA. Under the optimized conditions, it could yield 48.5 g/L of PEFA and 16.9 g/L of intracellular lipid within 156 h from inulin during 10-L batch fermentation. The PEFA consisting of a mixture of mannitol esters of 3-hydroxy C
, C
and C
fatty acids with variable acetylation showed outstanding surface activity and emulsifying activity, while the fatty acids of the intracellular lipid were mainly C
and C
and could be high-quality feedstock for biodiesel production.
The deep-sea yeast strain R. paludigena P4R5 was an excellent candidate for efficient simultaneous of biosurfactants and biodiesel from inulin. Our results also suggested that the establishment of fermentation systems with multiple metabolites production was an effective approach to improve the profitability.
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