Association of IFN‐γ polymorphisms with ankylosing spondylitis risk

The case‐control study was designed to investigate the genetic effects of interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) rs2069727 and rs1861494 polymorphisms on ankylosing spondylitis (AS) susceptibility in a Chinese Han population. Blood samples were collected from 108 AS patients and 110 healthy controls. IFN‐γ polymorphisms were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐RFLP). Hardy‐Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) test was performed in control group. Odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated using chi‐square test to evaluate the association between AS susceptibility and IFN‐γ polymorphisms, and the results were adjusted by logistic regressive analysis. The frequency of rs2069727 CC genotype was much higher in cases than that in controls, suggested its significant association with increased AS risk (adjusted OR = 5.899, 95% CI = 1.563‐22.261; P = .009). In addition, C allele also showed close association with increased risk of AS (adjusted OR = 2.052, 95% CI = 1.286‐1.704, P  = 0 .003). While the genotype and allele frequencies of IFN‐γ rs1861494 polymorphism were not significantly different between patients and controls (P  > 0.05 for all), IFN‐γ rs2069727 polymorphism is significantly associated with increased AS risk in a Chinese Han Population.     

High‐Performance Platinum‐Perovskite Composite Bifunctional Oxygen Electrocatalyst for Rechargeable Zn–Air Battery

Constructing highly active electrocatalysts with superior stability at low cost is a must, and vital for the large‐scale application of rechargeable Zn–air batteries. Herein, a series of bifunctional composites with excellent electrochemical activity and durability based on platinum with the perovskite Sr(Co_0.8Fe_0.2)_0.95P_0.05O_3?δ (SCFP) are synthesized via a facile but effective strategy. The optimal sample Pt‐SCFP/C‐12 exhibits outstanding bifunctional activity for the oxygen reduction reaction and oxygen evolution reaction with a potential difference of 0.73 V. Remarkably, the Zn–air battery based on this catalyst shows an initial discharge and charge potential of 1.25 and 2.02 V at 5 mA cm^?2, accompanied by an excellent cycling stability. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X‐ray absorption near‐edge structure, and extended X‐ray absorption fine structure experiments demonstrate that the superior performance is due to the strong electronic interaction between Pt and SCFP that arises as a result of the rapid electron transfer via the Pt? O? Co bonds as well as the higher concentration of surface oxygen vacancies. Meanwhile, the spillover effect between Pt and SCFP also can increase more active sites via lowering energy barrier and change the rate‐determining step on the catalysts surface. Undoubtedly, this work provides an efficient approach for developing low‐cost and highly active catalysts for wider application of electrochemical energy devices.     

A Review on Additives for Halide Perovskite Solar Cells

Additives are widely adopted for efficient, stable, and hysteresis‐free perovskite solar cells and play an important role in various breakthroughs of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Herein the various additives adopted for PSCs are reviewed and their functioning mechanism and influence on device performance is described. The main roles of additives, modulating morphology of perovskite films, stabilizing phase of formamidinium (FA) and cesium (Cs)‐based perovskites, adjusting energy level alignment in PSCs, suppressing nonradiative recombination in perovskites, eliminating hysteresis, enhancing operational stability of PSCs, are summarized.     

二甲双胍调控糖尿病大鼠骨髓间充质干细胞的增殖和分化

虽然二甲双胍广泛用于治疗2型糖尿病,但是其对骨骼的潜在影响知之甚少。因此,本研究评估了二甲双胍对培养的大鼠骨髓间充质干细胞(MSCs)和脂肪细胞两者的分化以及增殖的影响。首先随机组形成对照实验,其中对照组为在不经二甲双胍处理培养基中培养MSCs细胞21 d,而二甲双胍组则在用100μmol/L二甲双胍处理培养基中培养MSCs 21 d。结果表明,二甲双胍增强了大鼠MSCs的成骨细胞分化细胞中ALP的活性,抑制了培养中MSCs脂肪形成分化的过程,但是增强了MSCs细胞的增殖能力。     

A high‐throughput BAC end analysis protocol (BAC‐anchor) for profiling genome assembly and physical mapping

Traditional approaches for sequencing insertion ends of bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) libraries are laborious and expensive, which are currently some of the bottlenecks limiting a better understanding of the genomic features of auto‐ or allopolyploid species. Here, we developed a highly efficient and low‐cost BAC end analysis protocol, named BAC‐anchor, to identify paired‐end reads containing large internal gaps. Our approach mainly focused on the identification of high‐throughput sequencing reads carrying restriction enzyme cutting sites and searching for large internal gaps based on the mapping locations of both ends of the reads. We sequenced and analysed eight libraries containing over 3 200 000 BAC end clones derived from the BAC library of the tetraploid potato cultivar C88 digested with two restriction enzymes, Cla I and Mlu I. About 25% of the BAC end reads carrying cutting sites generated a 60–100 kb internal gap in the potato DM reference genome, which was consistent with the mapping results of Sanger sequencing of the BAC end clones and indicated large differences between autotetraploid and haploid genotypes in potato. A total of 5341 Cla I‐ and 165 Mlu I‐derived unique reads were distributed on different chromosomes of the DM reference genome and could be used to establish a physical map of target regions and assemble the C88 genome. The reads that matched different chromosomes are especially significant for the further assembly of complex polyploid genomes. Our study provides an example of analysing high‐coverage BAC end libraries with low sequencing cost and is a resource for further genome sequencing studies.     

Psoralen attenuates bleomycin‐induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice through inhibiting myofibroblast activation and collagen deposition

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive disease characterized by excessive deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) and chronic inflammation with limited therapeutic options. Psoralen, a major active component extracted from Psoralea corylifolia L. seed, has several biological effects. However, the role of psoralen in IPF is still unclear. Here, we hypothesized that psoralen played an essential role in IPF in the inhibition of fibroblast proliferation and inflammatory response. A murine model of IPF was established by injecting bleomycin (BLM) intratracheally, and psoralen was administered for 14 days from the 7^th to 21^st day after BLM injection. Our results demonstrated that psoralen treatment reduced body weight loss and improved the survival rate of mice with IPF. Histological and immunofluorescent examination showed that psoralen alleviated BLM‐induced lung parenchymal inflammatory and fibrotic alteration. Furthermore, psoralen inhibited proliferation and collagen synthesis of mouse fibroblasts and partially reversed BLM‐induced expression of α‐smooth muscle actin at both the tissue and cell level. Moreover, psoralen decreased the expression of transforming growth factor‐β1, interleukin‐1β, and tumor necrosis factor‐α in the lungs of BLM‐stimulated mice. Our results reveale for the first time that psoralen exerts therapeutic effects against IPF in a BLM‐induced murine model.     

Extraordinarily conserved chromosomal synteny of Citrus species revealed by chromosome‐specific painting

Reliable identification of individual chromosomes in eukaryotic species is the foundation for comparative chromosome synteny and evolutionary studies. Unfortunately, chromosome identification has been a major challenge for plants with small chromosomes, such as the Citrus species. We developed oligonucleotide‐based chromosome painting probes for all nine chromosomes in Citrus maxima (Pummelo). We were able to identify all C. maxima chromosomes in the same metaphase cells using multiple rounds of sequential fluorescence in situ hybridization with the painting probes. We conducted comparative chromosome painting analysis in six different Citrus and related species. We found that each painting probe hybridized to only a single chromosome in all other five species, suggesting that the six species have maintained a complete chromosomal synteny after more than 9 million years of divergence. No interchromosomal rearrangement was identified in any species. These results support the hypothesis that karyotypes of woody species are more stable than herbaceous plants because woody plants need a longer period to fix chromosome structural variants in natural populations.