The Kinome of Edible and Medicinal Fungus Wolfiporia cocos

Optimizing liquid fermentation for Wolfiporia cocos: gene expression and biosynthesis of pachymic acid and mycelial biomass

Wolfiporia cocos, a versatile fungus acclaimed for its nutritional and therapeutic benefits in Traditional Chinese Medicine, holds immense potential for pharmaceutical and industrial applications. In this study, we aimed to optimize liquid fermentation techniques and culture medium composition to maximize mycelial biomass (MB) yield, pachymic acid (PA) concentration, and overall PA production. Additionally, we investigated the molecular basis of our findings by quantifying the expression levels of genes associated with PA and MB biosynthesis using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Under the optimized fermentation conditions, significant results were achieved, with maximum MB reaching 6.68 g l-1, PA content peaking at 1.25 mg g-1, and a total PA yield of 4.76 g l-1. Notably, among the four examined genes, squalene monooxygenase, exhibited enhanced expression at 0.06 ratio under the optimized conditions. Furthermore, within the realm of carbohydrate-active enzymes, the glycoside hydrolases 16 family displayed elevated expression levels at 21 ratios, particularly during MB production. This study enhances understanding of genetic mechanism governing MB and PA production in W. cocos, highlighting the roles of squalene monooxygenase and glycoside hydrolases 16 carbohydrate-active enzymes.

Structural characterization and immunomodulatory activity of a water-soluble polysaccharide from Poria cocos

In order to investigate the structural characteristics and immunomodulatory effects of Poria cocos polysaccharides, a water-soluble homogeneous polysaccharide (PCP-2) was isolated by water extraction and alcohol precipitation and further purified by Cellulose DEAE-52 and Sephacryl S-100HR column chromatography. PCP-2 is a heteropolysaccharide composed of glucose, galactose, mannose, and fucose in a molar ratio of 42.0: 35.0: 13.9: 9.1. It exhibits a narrow molecular weight distribution at 2.35 kDa with a branching degree of 37.1 %. The main chain types of PCP-2 include 1,3-β-D-Glc and 1,6-β-D-Glc as the backbone glucans and 1,6-α-D-Gal as the backbone heterogalactan. In vitro experiments demonstrate that PCP-2 directly stimulate RAW264.7 cell proliferation and secretion of inflammatory factors such as NO and TNF-α. In cyclophosphamide (CTX)-induced mice, it promotes the development of thymus and spleen immune organs, elevates the blood levels of IgG, IgA, IgM and CD3+CD4+ T cells, increases the intestinal villus height/ crypt depth ratio and improves gut barrier dysfunctions. These findings suggest that PCP-2 is a natural fungal polysaccharide with broad spectrum of immunoenhancing effects, which can significantly ameliorate the immunocompromised state.

Homokaryotic High-Quality Genome Assembly of Medicinal Fungi Wolfiporia hoelen Reveals Auto-Regulation and High-Temperature Adaption of Probable Two-Speed Genome

Sclerotia of Wolfiporia hoelen are one of the most important traditional Chinese medicines and are commonly used in China, Japan, Korea, and other Asian countries. In the present study, we presented the first high-quality homokaryotic genome of W. hoelen with 14 chromosomes which was evaluated with assembly index, telomere position detection, and whole-genome collinearity. A 64.44 Mb genome was assembled with a Contig N50 length of 3.76 Mb. The imbalanced distribution of transposons and chromosome characters revealed the probable two-speed genome of W. hoelen. High consistency between methylation and transposon conserved the genome stability. The expansion of the gene family about signal transduction and nutritional transport has intimate relationships with sclerotial formation. Up-regulation of expression for distinctive decomposition enzymes, ROS clearance genes, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, and change of the cell wall components maintained high-speed growth of mycelia that may be the high-temperature adaption strategy of W. hoelen. Further, the analysis of mating-control genes demonstrated that HD3 probably had no function on mating recognition, with the HD protein in a distant genetic with known species. Overall, the high-quality genome of W. hoelen provided crucial information for genome structure and stability, high-temperature adaption, and sexual and asexual process.

Jianpi Huayu Decoction Attenuates the Immunosuppressive Status of H22 Hepatocellular Carcinoma-Bearing Mice: By Targeting Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells

Tumor-induced immunosuppressive microenvironment in which myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) plays an important role, remains an obstacle for effective oncotherapy currently. Inducing MDSCs into maturation was confirmed as an effective method to reduce the tumor-bearing host's immunosuppression. Traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) possess characteristics of alleviating immunosuppression of cancer patients and low toxicity. Jianpi Huayu Decoction (JHD) was an experienced formula of TCM for oncotherapy based on TCM theory and clinical practice. We previously observed that JHD attenuated the expression of interleukin-10 (IL-10) and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) in tumor. IL-10 and TGF-β were found to be cytokines positively related to immunosuppression induced by MDSCs. Here, our study was designed to further investigate the regulation of JHD on the immune system in the H₂₂ liver-cancer mouse model. Mainly, flow cytometry was used to detect the proportion of immune cells, to analyze the apoptosis, differentiation and reactive oxygen species of MDSCs. We found that JHD significantly reduced the destruction of spleen structure, reduced the proportion of regulatory T cells (Treg) and T helper 17 cells (Th17), and increased the proportion of cytotoxic T lymphotes (CTL), Dendritic cells (DC) and CD11b⁺Gr-1⁺cells in spleen, but with no significant change of T helper 1 cells (Th1), T helper 2 cells (Th2) and macrophages. In vitro experiments showed that apoptosis of MDSCs was decreased as the time of JHD stimulation increased, which partly explained the increase of CD11b⁺Gr-1⁺cells in the spleen. Meanwhile, JHD could promote the differentiation of MDSCs into macrophages and dendritic cells, attenuate expression of ROS in MDSCs and reduce its inhibition on the proliferation of CD4⁺ T cells, in vitro. Therefore, that the proportion of CD11b⁺Gr-1⁺ cells increased in the spleen of tumor-bearing hosts may not be villainy after treatment, when these drugs suppress the immunosuppressive ability of CD11b⁺Gr-1⁺ cells and promote it mature to replenish dendritic cell, at the same time. Generally, JHD may be a complementary and alternative drug for attenuating the immunosuppressive status induced by hepatocellular carcinoma, possibly by promoting differentiation and inhibiting the immunosuppressive activity of MDSCs.

In Silico Study of Anti-Insomnia Mechanism for Suanzaoren Prescription

Insomnia is a common and widespread sleeping disorder caused by various risk factors. Though beneficial, conventional treatments of insomnia have significant limitations. As an alternative treatment, Chinese herbal formula Suanzaoren prescription (SZRP), composed of Suanzaoren [seeds of Ziziphus jujuba var. spinosa (Bunge) Hu ex H.F.Chow] and four additional herbs, has been reported with significant anti-insomnia effects. Yet the anti-insomnia mechanism of the herb formulae remains unknown. In this study, we attempted to extrapolate the holistic anti-insomnia mechanism of SZRP through herbal targeting and network pharmacology. The results indicated that the ingredients of Suanzaoren can target multi-neurotransmitter receptors at synapse interface, which was reported to be associated with sedative and hypnotic effects, while the four additional herbs can hit multiple pathways downstream of membrane neurotransmitters. Furthermore, the four additional herbs showed highly cooperative targeting patterns in the paralleled and cross-talked pathways related to inflammatory regulation and endocrine system, which may contribute to the additional relief of insomnia caused by inflammation, anxiety, or endocrine disorder. The interesting complementary mechanism we found among the herbal groups of SZRP may provide an example to study Chinese herbal formula and offers clues to future design of anti-insomnia strategy.

Production of a novel Poria cocos immunomodulatory protein in Pichia pastoris: cloning, expression, purification and activities assays

In this study, the cDNA of immunomodulatory protein from Poria cocos (PCP) was amplified by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and used to transform P. Pastoris cells, resulting in rPCP expression as a secreted protein to a concentration of ~ 38 mg/L following methanol induction in shake flasks. Approximately 1.6 mg of high purity rPCP was obtained from a 100-mL culture by Ni⁺-affinity chromatography, and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis results indicated rPCP as a homologous dimer glycoprotein formed by different molecular-weight monomers. Peptide-N-glycosidase F-mediated deglycosylation analysis showed the presence of an N-glycosylated rPCP monomer, and bioactivity assays showed that rPCP activity upregulated tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin-1β transcription and increased TNF-α secretion from mouse macrophage RAW 264.7 cells. Shortly, we demonstrated successful purification of active rPCP from P. pastoris, which promoted further study of its biological activities and medical applications.

Validation of Internal Control Genes for Quantitative Real-Time PCR Gene Expression Analysis in Morchella

The reliability of qRT-PCR results depend on the stability of reference genes used for normalization, suggesting the necessity of identification of reference genes before gene expression analysis. Morels are edible mushrooms well-known across the world and highly prized by many culinary kitchens. Here, several candidate genes were selected and designed according to the Morchella importuna transcriptome data. The stability of the candidate genes was evaluated with geNorm and NormFinder under three different experimental conditions, and several genes with excellent stability were selected. The extensive adaptability of the selected genes was tested in ten Morchella species. Results from the three experimental conditions revealed that ACT1 and INTF7 were the most prominent genes in Morchella, CYC3 was the most stable gene in different development stages, INTF4/AEF3 were the top-ranked genes across carbon sources, while INTF3/CYC3 pair showed the robust stability for temperature stress treatment. We suggest using ACT1, AEF3, CYC3, INTF3, INTF4 and INTF7 as reference genes for gene expression analysis studies for any of the 10 Morchella strains tested in this study. The stability and practicality of the gene, vacuolar protein sorting (INTF3), vacuolar ATP synthase (INTF4) and14-3-3 protein (INTF7) involving the basic biological processes were validated for the first time as the candidate reference genes for quantitative PCR. Furthermore, the stability of the reference genes was found to vary under the three different experimental conditions, indicating the importance of identifying specific reference genes for particular conditions.

The grapevine kinome: annotation, classification and expression patterns in developmental processes and stress responses

Protein kinases (PKs) have evolved as the largest family of molecular switches that regulate protein activities associated with almost all essential cellular functions. Only a fraction of plant PKs, however, have been functionally characterized even in model plant species. In the present study, the entire grapevine kinome was identified and annotated using the most recent version of the grapevine genome. A total of 1168 PK-encoding genes were identified and classified into 20 groups and 121 families, with the RLK-Pelle group being the largest, with 872 members. The 1168 kinase genes were unevenly distributed over all 19 chromosomes, and both tandem and segmental duplications contributed to the expansion of the grapevine kinome, especially of the RLK-Pelle group. Ka/Ks values indicated that most of the tandem and segmental duplication events were under purifying selection. The grapevine kinome families exhibited different expression patterns during plant development and in response to various stress treatments, with many being coexpressed. The comprehensive annotation of grapevine kinase genes, their patterns of expression and coexpression, and the related information facilitate a more complete understanding of the roles of various grapevine kinases in growth and development, responses to abiotic stress, and evolutionary history.