New Dawn for Atherosclerosis: Vascular Endothelial Cell Senescence and Death

Endothelial cells (ECs) form the inner linings of blood vessels, and are directly exposed to endogenous hazard signals and metabolites in the circulatory system. The senescence and death of ECs are not only adverse outcomes, but also causal contributors to endothelial dysfunction, an early risk marker of atherosclerosis. The pathophysiological process of EC senescence involves both structural and functional changes and has been linked to various factors, including oxidative stress, dysregulated cell cycle, hyperuricemia, vascular inflammation, and aberrant metabolite sensing and signaling. Multiple forms of EC death have been documented in atherosclerosis, including autophagic cell death, apoptosis, pyroptosis, NETosis, necroptosis, and ferroptosis. Despite this, the molecular mechanisms underlying EC senescence or death in atherogenesis are not fully understood. To provide a comprehensive update on the subject, this review examines the historic and latest findings on the molecular mechanisms and functional alterations associated with EC senescence and death in different stages of atherosclerosis.

Functional analysis of differentially expressed circular RNAs in sheep subcutaneous fat

BACKGROUND

Circular RNAs (circRNAs), as important non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), are involved in many biological activities. However, the exact chemical mechanism behind fat accumulation is unknown. In this paper, we obtained the expression profiles of circRNAs using high-throughput sequencing and investigated their differential expression in subcutaneous fat tissue of Duolang and Small Tail Han sheep.

RESULTS

From the transcriptomic analysis, 141 differentially expressed circRNAs were identified, comprising 61 up-regulated circRNAs and 80 down-regulated circRNAs. These host genes were primarily enriched in the MAPK and AMPK signaling pathways which is closely associated with fat deposition regulation. We identified circRNA812, circRNA91, and circRNA388 as vital genes in fat deposition by miRNA-circRNA target gene prediction. The functional annotation results of target genes of key circRNAs showed that the signaling pathways mainly included PI3K-Akt and AMPK. We constructed the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulatory network to study the role of circRNAs in sheep lipid deposition, and circRNA812, circRNA91, and circRNA388 can adsorb more miRNAs. NC_040253.1_5757, as the source of miRNA response element (MRE) among the three, may play an important role during the process of sheep fat deposition.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study gives a systematic examination of the circRNA profiles expressed in sheep subcutaneous fat. These results from this study provide some new basis for understanding circRNA function and sheep fat metabolism.

[Summary of best evidence for pulse contour cardiac output monitoring in severe burn patients]

Objective: To summarize the best evidence for pulse contour cardiac output (PiCCO) monitoring in severe burn patients. Methods: A bibliometric approach was used. Foreign language databases including UpToDate, BMJ Best Practice, Joanna Briggs Institute Evidence-Based Practice Database, Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Medline, and Guideline International Network, as well as Chinese databases such as China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, and VIP Database were systematically retrieved to obtain all the publicly published evidence on PiCCO monitoring in severe burn patients in each database from the establishment of each database to May 2022, including guidelines, expert consensus, evidence summary, systematic review, and original research. The literature was screened and evaluated for the quality, from which the evidences were extracted, evaluated, and classified to summarize the best evidences. Results: Three guidelines, two expert consensuses, one evidence summary (with two systematic reviews being traced), two systematic reviews, three randomized controlled trials, one cohort study, and one case-control study were retrieved and included, with good quality of literature. Totally 37 pieces of best evidences about PiCCO monitoring in severe burn patients were summarized from the aspects of pre-operation evaluation, pipe placement and operation, monitoring system establishment, pipeline maintenance, and supervision and education. Conclusions: Totally 37 pieces of best evidences about PiCCO monitoring in severe burn patients are summarized from 5 aspects, providing a basis for the clinical implementation of scientific and standardized PiCCO monitoring and nursing management.

Prediction and early warning model of mixed exposure to air pollution and meteorological factors on death of respiratory diseases based on machine learning

In recent years, with the repeated occurrence of extreme weather and the continuous increase of air pollution, the incidence of weather-related diseases has increased yearly. Air pollution and extreme temperature threaten sensitive groups' lives, among which air pollution is most closely related to respiratory diseases. Owing to the skewed attention, timely intervention is necessary to better predict and warn the occurrence of death from respiratory diseases. In this paper, according to the existing research, based on a number of environmental monitoring data, the regression model is established by integrating the machine learning methods XGBoost, support vector machine (SVM), and generalized additive model (GAM) model. The distributed lag nonlinear model (DLNM) is used to set the warning threshold to transform the data and establish the warning model. According to the DLNM model, the cumulative lag effect of meteorological factors is explored. There is a cumulative lag effect between air temperature and PM2.5, which reaches the maximum when the lag is 3 days and 5 days, respectively. If the low temperature and high environmental pollutants (PM2.5) continue to influence for a long time, the death risk of respiratory diseases will continue to rise, and the early warning model based on DLNM has better performance.

Genome-Wide Analysis of microRNAs Identifies the Lipid Metabolism Pathway to Be a Defining Factor in Adipose Tissue From Different Sheep

microRNAs are a class of important non-coding RNAs, which can participate in the regulation of biological processes. In recent years, miRNA has been widely studied not only in humans and mice, but also in animal husbandry. However, compared with other livestock and poultry breeds, the study of miRNA in subcutaneous adipose tissue of sheep is not comprehensive. Transcriptome analysis of miRNAs in subcutaneous adipose tissue of Duolang sheep, and Small Tail Han sheep was performed using RNA-Seq technology. Differentially expressed miRNAs were screened between different breeds. Target genes were predicted, and then the joint analysis of candidate genes were conducted based on Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment. Finally, the RNA-Seq data were verified by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Herein, we identified 38 differentially expressed miRNAs (9 novel miRNAs and 29 known miRNAs). In addition, a total of 854 target genes were predicted by miRanda software. GO and KEGG pathway analysis demonstrated that regulation of lipolysis in adipocytes plays a key role in the deposition of subcutaneous adipose tissue in Duolang sheep and Small Tail Han sheep. The miRNAs might regulate fat deposits by regulating genes involved in regulation of lipolysis in adipocytes. Specifically, NC_ 040278.1_ 37602, oar-mir-493-3p, NC_ 040278.1_ 37521 and NC_ 040255.1_ 11627 might target PTGS2, AKT2, AKT3, and PIK3CA, respectively, and then play critical regulatory role. In conclusion, all the results provide a good idea for further revealing the mechanism of subcutaneous adipose tissue deposition and improving the meat production performance of sheep, and lay a foundation for promoting the development of animal husbandry.

[Effect of early-life antibiotic exposure on allergic symptoms in children aged 6-11 months and 18-23 months based a birth cohort study]

Objective: To analyze the associations between prenatal and 1-year-old exposure to antibiotics and allergic symptoms in children aged 6-11 months and 18-23 months. Methods: In this study, a prospective birth cohort study was adopted. A total of 2 122 pregnant women were enrolled in Maternal and Child Health Care Center of Ma'anshan from June 2015 to June 2016, and they were followed up from the beginning of pregnancy to children's 24 months of age. Excluding 564 pairs of mothers and children who were lost to follow-up or with incomplete information on the use of antibiotics and children's allergic symptoms, a total of 1 558 pairs of mothers and children were included in the analysis of this study. The parents and children's general demographic information, early-life antibiotic exposure and other data were collected, the information about allergic symptoms in children aged 6-11 months and 18-23 months were investigated by reference to the "International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC)". The univariate and multivariate binary unconditional logistic regression model was used to was used to estimate associations between the effects of early-life antibiotic exposure on allergic symptoms in 2-year-old children. Results: The antibiotic usage rate of pregnant women during pregnancy was 3.4% (53), and the antibiotic usage rates of children between 0 to 2 months, 3 to 5 months, and 6 to 11 months were separately 15.2%(237), 15.5%(242) and 17.3%(269). The total prevalence of allergic diseases in children aged 6 to 11 months was 24.1% (375 children), and the total prevalence of allergic diseases in children aged 18 to 23 months was 22.0% (342 children). After adjust parental (maternal) education level, family monthly income per capita, parental (maternal) allergy history, parental (maternal) age at pregnancy, mother's Body Mass Index (BMI) before pregnancy, exposure to second-hand smoke during pregnancy, delivery method, child gender, birth weight, preterm birth, the use of antibiotics when children were 3-5 months old (RR=1.61,95%CI:1.19-2.17) and 6-11 months old (RR=1.43,95%CI:1.06-1.93) were the risk factors for allergic symptoms at 6-11 months of age; and the use of antibiotics when children were 0-2 months old (RR=1.41, 95%CI: 1.03-1.95), 3-5 months old (RR=1.54, 95%CI: 1.12-2.11) and 6-11 months old (RR=1.58, 95%CI: 1.17-2.14) were the risk factors for allergic symptoms at 18-23 months of age. Conclusion: Children's exposure to antibiotics within 1 year of age was a risk factor for allergic symptoms in children aged 6-11 months and 18-23 months, children should avoid unnecessary antibiotic use in infancy.

Graphene oxide and ABA cotreatment regulates root growth of Brassica napus L. by regulating IAA/ABA

Previous studies have proven that graphene oxide (GO) regulates abscisic acid (ABA) and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) contents and modulates plant root growth. To better understand the mechanism of plant growth and development regulated by GO and crosstalk between ABA and GO, Zhongshuang No. 9 seedlings were treated with GO and ABA. The results indicated that GO and ABA significantly affected the morphological properties and endogenous phytohormone contents in seedlings, and there was significant crosstalk between GO and ABA. ABA treatments combined with GO led to a rapid decrease in triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) reduction intensity, and the inhibitory effect was enhanced with increasing ABA concentration. The treatments significantly affected the transcriptional levels of some key genes involved in the ABA, IAA, cytokinin (CTK), salicylic acid (SA), and ethane (ETH) pathways and increased the ABA and gibberellin (GA) contents in rapeseed seedlings. The effects of the treatments on the IAA and CTK contents were complex, but, importantly, the treatments suppressed root elongation. Correlation analysis also indicated that the relationship between root length and IAA/ABA could be described by a polynomial function: y = 88.11x² - 25.15x + 4.813(R² = 0.912). The treatments increased the ACS2 transcript abundance for ETH biosynthesis and the ICS1 transcriptional level of the key genes involved in salicylic acid (SA) biosynthesis, as well as the downstream signaling genes CBP60 and SARD1. This finding indicated that ABA is an important factor regulating the effects of GO on the growth and development of Brassica napus L., and that ETH and SA pathways may be potential pathways involved in the response of rape seedlings to GO treatment.

[A preliminary study on the outcome of lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome by low-dose decitabine]

目的

评价小剂量地西他滨治疗较低危骨髓增生异常综合征（MDS）患者的初步疗效及安全性，探讨MDS相关基因突变的临床意义。

方法

纳入浙江省4所医院收治的62例较低危MDS患者，治疗分2组，地西他滨组（地西他滨12 mg·m⁻²·d⁻¹，连续5 d）和支持治疗组，检测与MDS预后相关的15项基因突变情况。比较两组患者的总体有效率（ORR）和无进展生存（PFS）时间，分析其与基因突变的相关性。

结果

62例患者中，可评估患者51例，其中地西他滨组24例，支持治疗组27例。与支持治疗组相比，地西他滨组的ORR（66.7%对29.6%，χ²=6.996，P=0.008）和中位PFS时间显著改善（未达到对13.7个月，P=0.037）。51例患者中20例（39.2%）检测到基因突变阳性，其中4例患者单纯SF3B1阳性，均在支持治疗组。与基因突变阴性患者相比，16例基因突变阳性（除单纯SF3B1阳性）患者中位PFS时间显著缩短（9.2个月对18.5个月，P=0.008），其中地西他滨组8例患者中6例有效，支持治疗组无一例（0/8）有效。地西他滨治疗期间主要不良反应为3~4级粒细胞减少（45.8%），3~4级感染发生率为33.3%（8/24）。

结论

该研究小系列患者的初步结果表明应用小剂量地西他滨治疗较低危MDS患者可能有效，对于基因突变患者也可获益，且患者耐受，值得临床试验进一步明确其临床意义。

Effects of traditional Chinese medicine nursing combined with conventional nursing in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a meta-analysis

Objective

This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the effects of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) nursing combined with conventional nursing in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Methods

Data were collected from the databases of PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Google Scholar, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), WanFang Data (WF) and VIP Database, including literature regarding the effects of TCM nursing combined with conventional nursing in patients with COPD published before January 2017. The Jadad scale was used to assess the quality of the eligible literature. The weighted mean differences and odds ratios were used to analyze St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) scores, pulmonary function, hospital stay, and clinical efficacy.

Results

Twenty-three randomized controlled trials comprising 3116 cases (TCM nursing combined with the conventional nursing group: 1559; conventional nursing group: 1557) met the inclusion criteria. TCM nursing combined with conventional nursing was associated with a lower SGRQ score, higher forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) value, higher FEV1/forced vital capacity (FVC) value, higher FEV1% value, higher FEV1 predicted value, shorter hospital stay, and preferable clinical efficacy.

Conclusions

TCM nursing combined with conventional nursing emphasized that dialectical nursing can be performed preferably in patients with COPD.

Application of oxaliplatin in combination with epirubicin in transcatheter arterial chemoembolization in the treatment of primary liver carcinoma

Many cases of liver carcinoma miss the opportunity of surgical treatment because of hidden onset and delayed diagnosis. In recent years, interventional treatment has gradually become a non-surgical method for treating liver carcinoma. To discuss the effects of oxaliplatin in combination with epirubicin in the treatment and its influence on prognosis, this study randomly selected 218 advanced primary liver carcinoma patients from Binzhou People’s Hospital, Binzhou, China and divided them into a control group (n=109) and an observation group (n=109). Patients in both groups were given interventional treatment. Patients in the control group were perfused with oxaliplatin, while patients in the observation group were perfused with oxaliplatin and epirubicin. The effectsat 6-month and 12-month survival rates were compared between the two groups. The results demonstrated that the overall effective rate and clinical benefit rate of the observation group were much higher than those of the control group (30.3% vs 11.9%; 79.8%; vs 44.3%) (P less than 0.05). The serum Alpha Fetal Protein (AFP) and Carcino Embryonie Antigen (CEA) levels of the observation group were much lower than those of the control group; the Karnofsky performance score of the observation group was much lower than that of the control group; the two differences had statistical significance (P less than 0.05). The 6-month survival rate of the observation group was 91.67%, higher than that of the control group (86.11%) (P>0.05). The 12-month survival rate of the observation group was 83.33%, much higher than that of the control group (61.11%) (P less than 0.05). The difference of the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups had no statistical significance (P>0.05). Thus, it can be concluded that oxaliplatin in combination with epirubicin can improve survival quality, extend survival time, and decrease the serum AFP and CEA levels in the treatment of primary liver carcinoma, with definite effects but without aggravating toxic and side effects. Therefore, the therapy has important clinical value.

[Expression of enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis and polyketide synthase gene-expressing Escherichia coli in colorectal adenoma patients]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the distribution of various bacteria in adenoma tissue of colorectal adenoma (T/CRA), normal colonic mucosa tissue adjacent to the adenoma (N/CRA), and healthy colonic mucosa tissue (N/H) by comparing the number of total bacteria, Bacteroides fragilis (BF), enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis (ETBF), polyketide synthase (pks) gene-expressing Escherichia coli(E.coli)(pks(+) E. coli)among the above 3 types of tissues.

METHODS

A total of 36 patients diagnosed with colorectal adenoma by colonoscopy and pathology in Department of Gastroenterology, Peking University People's Hospital from September 2011 to September 2013 were selected into this study. T/CRA and N/CRA tissues from the 36 patients and N/H tissues from 18 healthy controls were collected for DNA extraction. The number of total bacteria, BF, ETBF, pks(+) E. coli was detected by quantitative real time PCR, and their correlation with colorectal adenoma was analyzed.

RESULTS

(1) The number of total bacteria decreased gradually from N/H, N/CRA, to T/CRA, with the median values being 3.18×10(8,) 1.57×10(8,) and 7.91×10(7) copies/g, respectively, and with significant difference among the three groups and between each two groups (all P<0.01). (2) The content of BF decreased gradually from N/H, N/CRA, to T/CRA, the median values being 6.03×10(5,) 4.28×10(4,) and 5.48×10(3) copies/g, respectively, and with significant difference among the three groups and between each two groups (all P<0.01). (3) The toxin content produced by ETBF increased from N/H, N/CRA, to T/CRA, the relative expression being 1.73±0.30, 6.15±1.52, and 8.54±1.80, respectively. Significant difference was found between the T/CRA and N/H tissue (P=0.003), but not between any other two groups. (4) The expression of clbB in pks(+) E.coli was highest in T/CRA colonic tissue (2.96±0.28), followed by the N/CRA (2.79±0.19) and N/H tissue (1.06±0.08). Significant difference was found between T/CRA and N/H tissues, as well as between N/CRA and N/H tissues (both P<0.001), but not between T/CRA and N/CRA tissues.

CONCLUSIONS

The number of total bacteria is markedly reduced in the colonic mucosa of CRA patients compared to normal people, while the expressions of ETBF and pks(+) E.coli are significantly increased. Such changes in total bacterial, ETBF and pks(+) E.coli concentrations in colonic mucosa may be related to the tumorigenesis of colorectal adenoma.

Graphene oxide modulates root growth of Brassica napus L. and regulates ABA and IAA concentration

Researchers have proven that nanomaterials have a significant effect on plant growth and development. To better understand the effects of nanomaterials on plants, Zhongshuang 11 was treated with different concentrations of graphene oxide. The results indicated that 25-100mg/l graphene oxide treatment resulted in shorter seminal root length compared with the control samples. The fresh root weight decreased when treated with 50-100mg/l graphene oxide. The graphene oxide treatment had no significant effect on the Malondialdehyde (MDA) content. Treatment with 50mg/l graphene oxide increased the transcript abundance of genes involved in ABA biosynthesis (NCED, AAO, and ZEP) and some genes involved in IAA biosynthesis (ARF2, ARF8, IAA2, and IAA3), but inhibited the transcript levels of IAA4 and IAA7. The graphene oxide treatment also resulted in a higher ABA content, but a lower IAA content compared with the control samples. The results indicated that graphene oxide modulated the root growth of Brassica napus L. and affected ABA and IAA biosynthesis and concentration.

Arterial embolization of massive hepatocellular carcinoma with lipiodol and gelatin sponge

BACKGROUND

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) has been used to treat unresectable massive hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Lots of embolic agents have been applied in embolization because of it can decrease patient discomfort and side-effects.

AIM

The aim was to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of TACE with lipiodol and gelatin sponge.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 109 patients with massive HCC (the size of tumor >10 cm and unresectable) from January 2011 to August 2014 in our institution was divided into group A and group B based on the different embolitic agents. Before and about 1-month after each case of TACE, clinical and biological data such as tumor size, Child-Pugh stage, serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), complications, were recorded at the same time.

RESULTS

In group A, the diameter of the tumor reduced from 12.57 ± 1.26 cm to 9.04 ± 0.89 cm. No patient was complete response (CR), partial response (PR) 36, stable disease (SD) 7 and PD 6; in group B, the diameter of tumor decreased from 12.08 ± 1.42 cm to 8.43 ± 1.05 cm, CR 0, but PR 27, SD 18 and PD 15. RR in group A was significantly higher than in group B (P < 0.05).The change of Child-Pugh stage and AFP pre- and post-operative in group A can be found significantly better than in group B.

CONCLUSIONS

TACE with lipiodol and gelatin sponge is a highly effective for massive HCC.

Development and characterization of novel expressed sequence tag-derived simple sequence repeat markers in Hevea brasiliensis (rubber tree)

Cultivated clones of Hevea brasiliensis have a narrow genetic base. In order to broaden the genetic base, it is first necessary to investigate the genetic diversity of wild populations. Expressed sequence tag-simple sequence repeat (EST-SSR) markers were developed to investigate the genetic diversity of Hevea populations. Four hundred and thirty microsatellites were identified and 148 primers were designed to amplify the loci. Twenty-nine primer pairs were synthesized and evaluated for their ability to detect genetic polymorphisms among 40 wild accessions of H. brasiliensis. Twenty-one of the 29 loci were polymorphic. The number of alleles per locus in the 40 accessions ranged from 2 to 7. H(O) and H(E) at each locus ranged from 0.0000 to 0.9000 and from 0.0000 to 0.8704, respectively. All 21 loci could amplify in H. brasiliensis, H. pauciflora, H. nitida, H. spruceana, and H. camargoana. The EST-SSR primers developed herein can be used in genetic diversity and structure studies in H. brasiliensis.

[Screening of high-yield PUFAs Mortierella isabellina strain]

The original strain Mortierella isabellina As3.3410 was treated by microwave and ultraviolet. Mutated strains were screened by acetyl salicylic acid and low temperature (15°C). A high-yield strain named as A35-4 was successfully selected. The biomass of this strain was 17.9 g/L, oil content was 67.8%, oil production was 12.12 g/L, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) content was 20.2%, and production of PUFAs was 2.46 g/L, which increased 32.6%, 49.8%, 98.69%, 14.0%, and 125.7% compared with the original A0 stain, respectively. The continuous slope transmission experiments confirmed that the strain had a good genetic stability. The study is beneficial for cloning high efficiency genes for PUFAs and producing PUFAs in this stain, and lays the ground work for creation of transgenic plants containing high levels of PUFAs.

Significance of serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

AIM: To evaluate the significance of serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

METHODS: Fifty-seven NAFLD patients, including 21 patients with simple steatosis, 29 patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and 7 patients with cirrhosis, and 22 healthy control subjects were included in this study. Serum TNF-α and IL-6 levels were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Body weight index, blood pressure, serum glucose, serum insulin and serum lipids were also measured to assess insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome complicated with NAFLD. The differences in serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6 between various groups were compared. The association of serum TNF-α and IL-6 levels with homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and the risk of metabolic syndrome was analyzed.

RESULTS: The levels of serum TNF-α and IL-6 significantly increased in patients with simple steatosis, NASH and cirrhosis compared with normal subjects (all P < 0.05). The levels of serum TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly higher in NASH patients than in patients with simple steatosis or cirrhosis (both P < 0.05). A significant positive correlation was found between serum TNF-α and IL-6 levels and HOMA-IR (r = 608, 0.709, both P = 0.000). In NAFLD patients complicated with metabolic syndrome, serum TNF-α and IL-6 levels were significantly elevated compared with NAFLD patients without evidence of metabolic syndrome (P < 0.05). A significant correlation was also observed between serum TNF-α and IL-6 levels and the risk of metabolic syndrome (r = 0.409 and 0.552; P = 0.002 and 0.000, respectively).

CONCLUSION: Increased TNF-α and IL-6 production not only plays an important role in the development and progression of NAFLD but also contributes to the development of metabolic syndrome in NAFLD patients by inducing insulin resistance.

Inflammation and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the hepatic component of the metabolic syndrome. The metabolic syndrome represents a chronic inflammatory state, and individuals with the disorder demonstrate various immunologic abnormalities. Innate immune dysfunction in adipose tissue leads to abnormal production of adipose-derived factors, some of which can inhibit hepatic fat disposal and promote lipid accumulation within hepatocytes. The latter induces generation of excessive proinflammatory cytokines, particularly when the hepatic innate immune system becomes Th-1 polarized, thus promoting the development of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Although sustained exposure to these inflammatory mediators generally promotes the generation of various profibrogenic factors, progression from NASH to cirrhosis is actually relatively uncommon due to reduced production of other cytokines such as Th-2 cytokines.

Biogeochemical transfer and dynamics of iodine in a soil-plant system

Radioactive iodide (125I) is used as a tracer to investigate the fate and transport of iodine in soil under various leaching conditions as well as the dynamic transfer in a soil-plant (Chinese cabbage) system. Results show that both soils (the paddy soil and the sandy soil) exhibit strong retention capability, with the paddy soil being slightly stronger. Most iodine is retained by soils, especially in the top 10 cm, and the highest concentration occurs at the top most section of the soil columns. Leaching with 1-2 pore volume water does not change this pattern of vertical distributions. Early breakthrough and long tailing are two features observed in the leaching experiments. Because of the relatively low peak concentration, the early breakthrough is really not an environmental concern of contamination to groundwater. The long tailing implies that the retained iodine is undergoing slow but steady release and the soils can provide a low but stable level of mobile iodine after a short period. The enrichment factors of 125I in different plant tissues are ranked as: root > stem > petiole > leaf, and the 125I distribution in the young leaves is obviously higher than that in the old ones. The concentrations of 125I in soil and Chinese cabbage can be simulated with a dual-chamber model very well. The biogeochemical behaviors of iodine in the soil-cabbage system show that cultivating iodized cabbage is an environmentally friendly and effective technique to eliminate iodine deficiency disorders (IDD). Planting vegetables such as cabbage on the 129I-contaminated soil could be a good remediation technique worthy of consideration.

A silver staining procedure for nucleic acids in polyacrylamide gels without fixation and pretreatment

Silver staining of nucleic acid has been widely used in molecular marker analysis such as simple sequence repeat (SSR), single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP), and amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP). Many alternatives to silver staining methods have been described, but these methods are not efficient or cost-effective. Here we report a silver staining method that requires less than 10min for one gel and can save chemicals as well. It has a detection limit of approximately 5.6pg of DNA/mm(2) in nondenaturing polyacrylamide gels and 12.8pg/mm(2) in denaturing polyacrylamide gels.

Mechanism of iodine uptake by cabbage: effects of iodine species and where it is stored

Iodine-enhanced vegetable has been proven to be an effective way to reduce iodine deficiency disorders in many regions. However, the knowledge about what mechanisms control plant uptake of iodine and where iodine is stored in plants is still very limited. A series of controlled experiments, including solution culture, pot planting, and field experiments were carried out to investigate the uptake mechanism of iodine in different forms. A new methodology for observing the iodine distribution within the plant tissues, based on AgI precipitation reaction and transmission electron microscope techniques, has been developed and successfully applied to Chinese cabbage. Results show that iodine uptake by Chinese cabbage was more effective when iodine was in the form of IO(3) (-) than in the form of I(-) if the concentration was low (<0.5 mg L(-1)), but the trend was opposite if iodine concentration was 0.5 mg L(-1) or higher. The uptake was more sensitive to metabolism inhibitor in lower concentration of iodine, which implies that the uptake mechanism transits from active to passive as the iodine concentration increases, especially when the iodine is in the form of IO(3) (-). The inorganic iodine fertilizer provided a quicker supply for plant uptake, but the higher level of iodine was toxic to plant growth. The organic iodine fertilizer (seaweed composite) provided a more sustainable iodine supply for plants. Most of the iodine uptake by the cabbage is intercepted and stored in the fibrins in the root while the iodine that is transported to the above-ground portion (shoots and leaves) is selectively stored in the chloroplasts.

[Characteristics of iodine uptake and accumulation by vegetables]

With seaweed iodine and KI as exogenous iodine sources, a pot experiment was conducted to study the characteristics of iodine uptake and accumulation by pakchoi cabbage, celery, capsicum, and radish. The results showed that the iodine content in the edible parts of test vegetables increased with increasing amount of exogenous iodine, but the iodine accumulation rate differed with the kinds of vegetables, in the order of pakchoi > celery > radish > capsicum. The majority of iodine was accumulated in roots, with lesser amount transferred to shoots. The distribution of iodine in vegetables was commonly in the order of root > leaf > stem > fruit, but the iodine in radish is lower in its rhizome than in its shoot. Low concentrations (0-25 mg x kg(-1)) of exogenous iodine had little effects on the growth of vegetables, while high concentrations (> or = 50 mg x kg(-1)) of it had inhibitory effects, resulting in a decreased vegetable biomass. The sensitivity of test vegetables to the adverse effect of exogenous iodine was in the order of capsicum > pachoi > celery > radish. Compared with seaweed iodine, KI decreased the biomass of first cutting significantly (P < 0.05), but for the second cutting, little difference was observed between these two iodine sources. The uptake and accumulation of these two iodine sources by vegetables also differed with cuttings, i.e., the first cutting vegetables absorbed more KI, while the second cutting vegetables absorbed more seaweed iodine (P < 0.05), suggesting that seaweed iodine had a longer efficacy than KI.

Cloning and molecular characterization of a functional flavonoid 3'-hydroxylase gene from Brassica napus

A flavonoid 3'-hydroxylase (F3'H) gene, denoted BnF3'H-1, was cloned from oilseed rape (Brassica napus). The gene of 3038 base pairs (bp) contains 3 introns. The complementary DNA (cDNA) consists of 1820bp and has an open reading frame of 1536bp encoding a polypeptide of 511 amino acids with a molecular weight of 56.62kDa and an isoelectric point of 7.08. BnF3'H-1 shows high homology to known F3'H genes, especially F3'H from Arabidopsis thaliana. Untranslated regions (UTRs) may play important roles in regulating the expression of BnF3'H-1. Besides containing a Kozak sequence, the first 77-bp region is C-rich but G-poor, and the 26-bp 5'-UTR contains 3 sites of ACCACT-like sequences. Alternative polyadenylation in the 3'-UTR is adopted by this gene to generate heterogeneous transcripts. Conserved domain search and motif characterization identified BnF3'H-1 as a cytochrome P450. All F3'H-featured motifs, VVVAAS, GGEK and VDVKG, are unchanged in BnF3'H-1. The N-terminal signal peptide/anchor and 3 transmembrane helices were predicted in BnF3'H-1, and its subcellular localization is most probably at the endoplasmic reticulum. Since 16 phosphorylation sites could be predicted, phosphorylation may be a necessary post-translational modification of BnF3'H-1. The secondary structure is dominated by alpha-helices and random coils. Most helices are located in the middle region, while extended strands mainly intersperse in terminal regions. DNA gel blot analysis indicated that 2 different F3'H genes might exist in B. napus. Semi-quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and RNA gel blot analysis showed that flowers have the highest F3'H expression, followed by pericarp and seed, and lower levels in some other organs. This species-featured expression pattern is in obedience to multiple functional roles that F3'H gene(s) play(s) in various organs of B. napus. The BnF3'H-1 coding region was expressed in Escherichia coli, and enzyme activity of the His-tagged protein was demonstrated by monitoring the conversion of the substrate naringenin using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), suggesting that BnF3'H-1 is catalytically functional. RT-PCR analysis suggests that transcription level of the F3'H gene(s) is not the reason for the different seed colorations found in near-isogenic lines (black-seeded L1 and yellow-seeded L2) of B. napus.