早期非小细胞肺癌患者血清巨噬细胞抑制因子-1、趋化素与临床病理特征及预后的关系

目的:探讨早期非小细胞肺癌(NSCLC)患者血清巨噬细胞抑制因子-1(MIC-1)、趋化素(chemerin)水平与临床病理特征及预后的关系。方法:选择72例NSCLC患者(NSCLC组)、53例肺良性疾病患者(良性组)、50例体检健康人群(对照组),分别检测血清MIC-1、chemerin水平,分析血清MIC-1、chemerin水平与NSCLC患者临床病理参数的关系。Kaplan-Meier法分析不同血清MIC-1、chemerin水平NSCLC患者生存时间的差异,COX比例风险回归分析血清MIC-1、chemerin水平与NSCLC患者预后的关系。结果:NSCLC组患者血清MIC-1、chemerin水平高于良性组和对照组(P0.05)。血清MIC-1水平与NSCLC患者年龄、目前吸烟、肿瘤直径、TNM分期、分化程度、复发或转移、生存状态有关(P0.05),chemerin水平与NSCLC患者目前吸烟、TNM分期、复发或转移、生存状态有关(P0.05)。高MIC-1水平患者生存率低于低MIC-1水平患者(P0.05),高chemerin水平患者生存率低于低chemerin水平患者(P0.05)。COX比例风险回归分析结果显示:血清MIC-1、chemerin、TNM分期与NSCLC不良预后独立相关。结论:血清MIC-1、chemerin水平与NSCLC患者部分临床病理参数和预后相关,可作为早期NSCLC患者预后预测的潜在指标。     

SOX7基因启动子甲基化水平对乳腺癌MDA-MB-231细胞株体外迁移和侵袭的影响

目的:探讨乳腺癌MDA-MB-231细胞中,Y性别决定区基因7(SOX7)基因启动子甲基化水平对细胞的体外迁移和侵袭的影响。方法:脂质体转染pcDNA3.0-DNA甲基转移酶3a(DNMT3a)质粒至MDA-MB-231细胞中,并于24h、48h及72h后,采用蛋白质免疫印迹实验(WB)检测细胞内DNMT3a蛋白表达水平;甲基化特异性定量PCR(Q-MSP)检测DNMT3a处理组、5-aza-C处理组及对照(Control)组MDA-MB-231细胞中的SOX7基因启动子DNA甲基化水平;实时荧光定量PCR(qRT-PCR)及WB实验检测各组MDA-MB-231细胞中的SOX7 m RNA和蛋白表达水平;细胞划痕实验及细胞侵袭实验检测各组MDA-MB-231细胞的迁移和侵袭能力。结果:pcDNA3.0-DNMT3a质粒转染MDA-MB-231细胞24h时,细胞内的DNMT3a蛋白表达水平最高。DNMT3a能够显著提高SOX7基因启动子DNA甲基化水平,而5-aza-C则抑制了SOX7基因启动子DNA甲基化水平(P0.05)。与Control组相比,DNMT3a处理组的MDA-MB-231细胞中,SOX7的m RNA及蛋白表达水平均明显下降,而5-aza-C处理组SOX7的m RNA及蛋白表达水平均明显增加(P0.05)。与Control组相比,DNMT3a处理组的MDA-MB-231细胞的迁移和侵袭能力均显著增强(P0.05),而5-aza-C处理组的MDA-MB-231细胞的迁移和侵袭能力变化不大(P0.05)。结论:在恶性肿瘤中,SOX7低表达表受其基因启动子高甲基化调节,且乳腺癌MDA-MB-231细胞中低表达的SOX7能够影响细胞的外迁移和侵袭能力。     

北方风沙区生态修复的科学原理、工程实践和恢复效果

北方风沙区位于欧亚草原的东部,是我国生态环境最为脆弱的地区之一,其在北方生态安全屏障和丝绸之路经济带建设中具有十分重要的战略地位。在国家一系列生态保育工程的支持下,该地区的生态环境得到明显改善。但是,由于受人类活动和全球气候变化的影响,该地区仍然面临着严峻的环境压力。在中国科学院科技服务网络计划(STS计划)等项目支持下,开展了北方风沙区土地沙化成因及退化土地空间分布研究,集成了北方风沙区重点脆弱区生态恢复的理论和技术体系,以内蒙古中部的阴山北麓地区、内蒙古浑善达克沙地和蒙辽交界的科尔沁沙地为重点研究区域,进行了高效人工草地建植、天然草地恢复和管理、沙化草地治理等相关工程技术的示范,开展生态恢复模式的效果跟踪监测和生态效益评估,确定生态恢复技术和模式的技术参数和指标,明确不同集成技术与模式在北方风沙区的适用区域和范围,为技术模式的推广应用提供科学依据。通过上述研究,可以为中央和地方政府制定生态系统管理和退化生态系统恢复政策、建立我国北方生态安全屏障提供决策依据,为生态修复产业提供技术指南,为相关研究提供全面系统的基础数据支撑。     

Red panda fine‐scale habitat selection along a Central Himalayan longitudinal gradient

Red panda Ailurus fulgens, an endangered habitat specialist, inhabits a narrow distribution range in bamboo abundance forests along mountain slopes in the Himalaya and Hengduan Mountains. However, their habitat use may be different in places with different longitudinal environmental gradients, climatic regimes, and microclimate. This study aimed to determine the habitat variables affecting red panda distribution across different longitudinal gradients through a multivariate analysis. We studied habitat selection patterns along the longitudinal gradient in Nepal's Himalaya which is grouped into the eastern, central, and western complexes. We collected data on red panda presence and habitat variables (e.g., tree richness, canopy cover, bamboo abundance, water availability, tree diameter, tree height) by surveys along transects throughout the species’ potential range. We used a multimodal inference approach with a generalized linear model to test the relative importance of environmental variables. Although the study showed that bamboo abundance had a major influence, habitat selection was different across longitudinal zones. Both canopy cover and species richness were unimportant in eastern Nepal, but their influence increased progressively toward the west. Conversely, tree height showed a decreasing influence on habitat selection from Eastern to Western Nepal. Red panda's habitat selection revealed in this study corresponds to the uneven distribution of vegetation assemblages and the dry climatic gradient along the eastern‐western Himalayas which could be related to a need to conserve energy and thermoregulate. This study has further highlighted the need of importance of bamboo conservation and site‐specific conservation planning to ensure long‐term red panda conservation.     

In Vivo Quantitative Imaging Provides Insights into Trunk Neural Crest Migration

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Genome-wide CRISPR activation screen identifies candidate receptors for SARS-CoV-2 entry

Science China Life Sciences - The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 has created a global health crisis. SARS-CoV-2 infects varieties of tissues where the known...     

Gene expression and the evolution of phenotypic diversity in social wasps

Background  

Organisms are capable of developing different phenotypes by altering the genes they express. This phenotypic plasticity provides a means for species to respond effectively to environmental conditions. One of the most dramatic examples of phenotypic plasticity occurs in the highly social hymenopteran insects (ants, social bees, and social wasps), where distinct castes and sexes all arise from the same genes. To elucidate how variation in patterns of gene expression affects phenotypic variation, we conducted a study to simultaneously address the influence of developmental stage, sex, and caste on patterns of gene expression in Vespula wasps. Furthermore, we compared the patterns found in this species to those found in other taxa in order to investigate how variation in gene expression leads to phenotypic evolution.