IL1RN promotes osteoblastic differentiation via interacting with ITGB3 in osteoporosis

The occurrence and progress of osteoporosis(OP)are partially caused by impaired osteoblast differentiation.Interleukin-I receptor antagonist(IL1RN)is an immune ...     

Sustained expression of MCP-1 induced low wall shear stress loading in conjunction with turbulent flow on endothelial cells of intracranial aneurysm

Shear stress was reported to regulate the expression of AC007362, but its underlying mechanisms remain to be explored. In this study, to isolate endothelial cells of blood vessels, unruptured and ruptured intracranial aneurysm (IA) tissues were collected from IA patients. Subsequently, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), Western blot and luciferase assay were performed to investigate the relationships between AC007362, miRNAs-493 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) exposed to shear stress. Reduced representation bisulphite sequencing (RRBS) was performed to assess the level of DNA methylation in AC007362 promoter. Accordingly, AC007362 and MCP-1 were significantly up-regulated while miR-493 was significantly down-regulated in HUVECs exposed to shear stress. AC007362 could suppress the miR-493 expression and elevate the MCP-1 expression, and miR-493 was shown to respectively target AC007362 and MCP-1. Moreover, shear stress in HUVECs led to the down-regulated DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1), as well as the decreased DNA methylation level of AC007362 promoter. Similar results were also observed in ruptured IA tissues when compared with unruptured IA tissues. In conclusion, this study presented a deep insight into the operation of the regulatory network of AC007362, miR-493 and MCP-1 upon shear stress. Under shear stress, the expression of AC007362 was enhanced by the inhibited promoter DNA methylation, while the expression of MCP-1 was enhanced by sponging the expression of miR-493.     

Blood-based gene expression profiles models for classification of subsyndromal symptomatic depression and major depressive disorder

Subsyndromal symptomatic depression (SSD) is a subtype of subthreshold depressive and also lead to significant psychosocial functional impairment as same as major depressive disorder (MDD). Several studies have suggested that SSD is a transitory phenomena in the depression spectrum and is thus considered a subtype of depression. However, the pathophysioloy of depression remain largely obscure and studies on SSD are limited. The present study compared the expression profile and made the classification with the leukocytes by using whole-genome cRNA microarrays among drug-free first-episode subjects with SSD, MDD, and matched controls (8 subjects in each group). Support vector machines (SVMs) were utilized for training and testing on candidate signature expression profiles from signature selection step. Firstly, we identified 63 differentially expressed SSD signatures in contrast to control (P< = 5.0E-4) and 30 differentially expressed MDD signatures in contrast to control, respectively. Then, 123 gene signatures were identified with significantly differential expression level between SSD and MDD. Secondly, in order to conduct priority selection for biomarkers for SSD and MDD together, we selected top gene signatures from each group of pair-wise comparison results, and merged the signatures together to generate better profiles used for clearly classify SSD and MDD sets in the same time. In details, we tried different combination of signatures from the three pair-wise compartmental results and finally determined 48 gene expression signatures with 100% accuracy. Our finding suggested that SSD and MDD did not exhibit the same expressed genome signature with peripheral blood leukocyte, and blood cell-derived RNA of these 48 gene models may have significant value for performing diagnostic functions and classifying SSD, MDD, and healthy controls.     

A noninvasive online system for biomass monitoring in shaker flasks using backward scattered light

This paper presents a noninvasive optical sensor system for monitoring cell growth in shaker flasks commonly used in biological laboratories. The system uses an open-source microprocessor board to monitor concentration of Escherichia coli host cells. To allow measurement for a range of filling degrees and shaker speeds, the backscattering angle is chosen to minimize interference from surface reflections and the measurement window is synchronized to the position of the shaker flask. A nonlinear calibration model of scattered light can predict offline optical density with a mean relative error of 5.2%, an accuracy which is comparable to the classical offline method and sufficient for biotechnology applications.     

Bmovo-1 Regulates Ovary Size in the Silkworm,Bombyx mori

The regulation of antagonistic OVO isoforms is critical for germline formation and differentiation in Drosophila. However, little is known about genes related to ovary development. In this study, we cloned the Bombyx mori ovo gene and investigated its four alternatively spliced isoforms. BmOVO-1, BmOVO-2 and BmOVO-3 all had four C2H2 type zinc fingers, but differed at the N-terminal ends, while BmOVO-4 had a single zinc finger. Bmovo-1, Bmovo-2 and Bmovo-4 showed the highest levels of mRNA in ovaries, while Bmovo-3 was primarily expressed in testes. The mRNA expression pattern suggested that Bmovo expression was related to ovary development. RNAi and transgenic techniques were used to analyze the biological function of Bmovo. The results showed that when the Bmovo gene was downregulated, oviposition number decreased. Upregulation of Bmovo-1 in the gonads of transgenic silkworms increased oviposition number and elevated the trehalose contents of hemolymph and ovaries. We concluded that Bmovo-1 was involved in protein synthesis, contributing to the development of ovaries and oviposition number in silkworms.     

湖北郧县肖沟旧石器时代遗址发掘简报

肖沟遗址位于湖北省郧阳区安阳镇钟家河村,埋藏于丹江口库区汉江左岸第二级堆积阶地,遗址所在地三面环水,北靠低山。2010年10月-12月对该地点进行抢救性发掘,揭露面积近1500 m~2,出土石制品413件。石制品类型包括石器、石核、石片、断块断片和碎块碎片等。古人类利用河流砾石,就地取材加工石制品;硬锤锤击是主要剥片方法;石制品总体以小型居多,石器主要以石片为毛坯,边刮器为主要类型。石制品特点显示石片工业特点。石制品类型以石片类和断块类为主体,石制品拼合率近10%,是一处原地埋藏的古人类遗址。通过与丹江口库区相关旧石器遗址的比较,结合地貌地层特点,推测该遗址形成于旧石器时代晚期。     

Galectin-3 as a Marker and Potential Therapeutic Target in Breast Cancer

Galectin-3 has a relatively high level of expression in triple-negative breast cancers and is a potential marker for this disease. However, the clinical and prognostic implications of galectin-3 expression in breast cancer remain unclear. We examined mastectomy specimens from 1086 breast cancer cases and matching, adjacent non-cancerous tissues using immunohistochemistry. Overall, triple-negative breast cancers expressed galectin-3 more strongly than did other breast cancers types (63.59% vs 21.36%, P = 0.001). Galectin-3 expression was not found to be an independent prognostic factor for breast cancer by Cox regression analysis, but was associated with chemotherapeutic resistance. Apoptosis was only weakly induced by arsenic trioxide (ATO) treatment in galectin-3-positive breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7), although ATO treatment up-regulated galectin-3 expression. Knockdown of galectin-3 in MDA-MB-231 cells sensitized them to killing by ATO. These findings support a possible role for galectin-3 as a marker for triple-negative breast cancer progression and as a therapeutic target in combination with ATO treatment, although the mechanisms that underlie this synergy require further investigation.     

Effects of Dietary Iron on Manganese Utilization in Broilers Fed with Corn-Soybean Meal Diet

Biological Trace Element Research - To investigate the effects of dietary iron (Fe) levels on manganese (Mn) utilization, 900 8-day-old broilers were randomly assigned to 1 of 6 treatments in a 3...     

甘薯羽状斑驳病毒分离提纯及血清学特性

从感染有甘薯羽状驳病毒的牵牛（I．Nil）叶片,通过超速离心,Cscl密度梯度离心提纯SPFMV粒子,每千克叶片可得病毒13－15毫克。电镜观察病毒粒子长度范围在820－860nm,也可见到900nm以上的特长粒子。病毒提纯物的紫外吸收曲线呈典型核蛋白吸收曲线,OD260／OD280＝1．21,免疫电镜检查,该病毒与SPFMV抗血清起阳性反应。     

Identification and functional analysis of two toxin–antitoxin systems in Campylobacter jejuni

Toxin–antitoxin (TA) systems are widely distributed in bacteria and play an important role in maintaining plasmid stability. The leading foodborne pathogen, Campylobacter jejuni, can carry multiple plasmids associated with antibiotic resistance or virulence. Previously a virulence plasmid named pVir was identified in C. jejuni 81‐176 and IA3902, but determining the role of pVir in pathogenesis has been hampered because the plasmid cannot be cured. In this study, we report the identification of two TA systems that are located on the pVir plasmid in 81‐176 and IA3902, respectively. The virA (proteic antitoxin)/virT (proteic toxin) pair in IA3902 belongs to a Type II TA system, while the cjrA (RNA antitoxin)/cjpT (proteic toxin) pair in 81‐176 belongs to a Type I TA system. Notably, cjrA (antitoxin) represents the first noncoding small RNA demonstrated to play a functional role in Campylobacter physiology to date. By inactivating the TA systems, pVir was readily cured from Campylobacter, indicating their functionality in Campylobacter. Using pVir‐cured IA3902, we demonstrated that pVir is not required for abortion induction in the guinea pig model. These findings establish the key role of the TA systems in maintaining plasmid stability and provide a means to evaluate the function of pVir in Campylobacter pathobiology.