Combining Untargeted and Targeted Proteomic Strategies for Discrimination and Quantification of Cashmere Fibers

Cashmere is regarded as a specialty and luxury fiber due to its scarcity and high economic value. For fiber quality assessment, it is technically very challenging to distinguish and quantify the cashmere fiber from yak or wool fibers because of their highly similar physical appearance and substantial protein sequence homology. To address this issue, we propose a workflow combining untargeted and targeted proteomics strategies for selecting, verifying and quantifying biomarkers for cashmere textile authentication. Untargeted proteomic surveys were first applied to identify 174, 157, and 156 proteins from cashmere, wool and yak fibers, respectively. After marker selection at different levels, peptides turned out to afford much higher selectivity than proteins for fiber species discrimination. Subsequently, parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) methods were developed for ten selected peptide markers. The PRM-based targeted analysis of peptide markers enabled accurate determination of fiber species and cashmere percentages in different fiber mixtures. Furthermore, collective use of these peptide makers allowed us to discriminate and quantify cashmere fibers in commercial finished fabrics that have undergone heavy chemical treatments. Cashmere proportion measurement in fabric samples using our proteomic approach was in good agreement with results from traditional light microscopy, yet our method can be more readily standardized to become an objective and robust assay for assessing authenticity of fibers and textiles. We anticipate that the proteomic strategies presented in our study could be further implicated in discovery of quality trait markers for other products containing highly homologous proteomes.     

A yeast's eye view of mammalian reproduction: cross-species gene co-expression in meiotic prophase

Background  

Meiotic prophase is a critical stage in sexual reproduction. Aberrant chromosome recombination during this stage is a leading cause of human miscarriages and birth defects. However, due to the experimental intractability of mammalian gonads, only a very limited number of meiotic genes have been characterized. Here we aim to identify novel meiotic genes important in human reproduction through computational mining of cross-species and cross-sex time-series expression data from budding yeast, mouse postnatal testis, mouse embryonic ovary, and human fetal ovary.     

Archaeological Evidence for Peach (Prunus persica) Cultivation and Domestication in China

The cultivated/domesticated peach (Prunus persica var. persica; Rosaceae, subgenus Amygdalus; synonym: Amygdalus persica) originated in China, but its wild ancestor, as well as where, when, and under what circumstances the peach was domesticated, is poorly known. Five populations of archaeological peach stones recovered from Zhejiang Province, China, document peach use and evolution beginning ca. 8000 BP. The majority of the archaeological sites from which the earliest peach stones have been recovered are from the Yangzi River valley, indicating that this is where early selection for favorable peach varieties likely took place. Furthermore, peach stone morphology through time is consistent with the hypothesis that an unknown wild P. persica was the ancestor of the cultivated peach. The oldest archaeological peach stones are from the Kuahuqiao (8000–7000 BP) and Tianluoshan (7000–6500 BP) sites and both stone samples segregate into two size groups, suggesting early selection of preferred types. The first peach stones in China most similar to modern cultivated forms are from the Liangzhu culture (ca. 5300 to 4300 BP), where the peach stones are significantly larger and more compressed than earlier stones. Similar peach stones are reported from Japan much earlier (6700–6400 BP). This large, compressed-stone peach was introduced to Japan and indicates a yet unidentified source population in China that was similar to the Liangzhu culture peach. This study proposes that the lower Yangzi River valley is a region, if not the region, of early peach selection and domestication and that the process began at least 7500 years ago.     

New Immunomodulating Polyhydroxypregnane Glycosides from the Roots of Cynanchum otophyllum C.K.Schneid.

Seven new polyhydroxypregnane glycosides, named cynotophyllosides P–V, together with three known analogs were isolated from the roots of Cynanchum otophyllum C.K.Schneid . Their structures were elucidated by a variety of spectroscopic techniques, as well as acid‐catalyzed hydrolysis. All isolates were tested for their immunological activities in vitro against Con A‐ and LPS‐induced proliferation of mice splenocytes. Immunoenhancing (for 1 , 9 ) and immunosuppressive (for 2 ) activities were observed. Furthermore, cynotophylloside R ( 3 ) showed immunomodulatory as it enhanced the proliferation of splenocytes in low concentration and suppressed immune cells in concentration more than 1.0 μg/ml.     

Cytotoxic Spliceostatin Analogs from Pseudomonas sp.

Two new spliceostatin analogs, designed as spliceostatins J and K ( 1 and 2 ), were isolated and identified from the culture of Pseudomonas sp., along with two known ones, FR901464 ( 3 ) and spliceostatin E ( 4 ). Their structures were elucidated by detailed interpretation of their spectroscopic data, especially 2D‐NMR and HR‐ESI‐MS. Spliceostatin J ( 1 ) represented the first example of spliceostatins bearing an unusual hexahydrofuro[3,4‐b]furan moiety. Biological assay showed all the isolated compounds except 1 displayed potent cytotoxic activities against two cancer cell lines (MDA‐MB‐231 and A‐549). Structure‐activity‐relationship studies revealed that the tetrahydropyran ring in spliceostatin analogs was necessary for their bioactive retention.     

扎龙湿地芦苇种群不同龄级根茎构件的季节动态

克隆植物根茎具有营养繁殖和扩展种群的功能,也是芽和分株生理整合的通道。根茎构件具有出生、死亡及年龄等种群统计特征,不同龄级根茎的季节动态可以反映根茎的存活和衰老过程。采用单位土体挖掘取样,对扎龙湿地4个生境芦苇种群根茎构件进行野外调查,比较不同龄级根茎长度、生物量和干物质贮量的季节动态。结果表明:7—10月份,1a根茎长度、生物量和干物质贮量均呈指数函数增加,在生长季中后期有一个持续时间较长的生长和物质积累时期。6—10月份,2a、3a根茎长度呈线性函数增加,4—6a根茎长度呈线性函数减少;2—4a根茎生物量和2—5a根茎干物质贮量呈二次函数先减少后增加,5a、6a根茎生物量和6a根茎干物质贮量呈幂函数减少。整个生长期内,根茎长度和根茎生物量均以3a最大,根茎长度以最高的6a最小,根茎生物量以最低的1a最小;根茎干物质储量以5a最大,以最低的1a最小。4个生境芦苇种群根茎长度、生物量和干物质贮量在龄级间的差异及差异序位稳定,在新根茎的产生、老根茎的存活以及根茎寿命与养分消耗和储藏上均具有稳定的生物学特性,不同龄级根茎在种群中的地位和作用以及对种群的贡献不同。     

Circular RNA circ_0001017 Sensitizes Cisplatin-Resistant Gastric Cancer Cells to Chemotherapy by the miR-543/PHLPP2 Axis

Biochemical Genetics - Resistance to cisplatin (CDDP) remains a major challenge for the treatment of gastric cancer (GC). Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been implicated in the development of CDDP...     

A Putative Adhesin-encoding Gene AOL_s00007g5 is involved in the Mycelial Growth and Development of Nematode-trapping Fungus Arthrobotrys oligospora

Applied Biochemistry and Microbiology - Arthrobotrys oligospora is one of the most commonly studied fungi that can form abundant traps to capture and consume nematodes at the parasitic stage....     

神经嵴细胞和神经嵴病及其致病机制的研究进展

神经嵴细胞(neural crest cells,NCCs)是一类脊椎动物特有的可迁移的多能干细胞,其可分化为软骨细胞、神经元和黑色素细胞等多种类型细胞。NCCs的形成、迁移和分化受到严格调控,任何扰乱NCCs发育的因素都可导致胚胎发育畸形。由神经嵴细胞发育异常所导致的一系列疾病统称为神经嵴病(neurocristopathies,NCPs)。NCPs种类繁多且表型复杂,可累及人体多个部位(颅面部、心脏、肠胃和皮肤等),严重危害患者的身体机能和心理健康。NCPs占所有出生缺陷患儿的1/3,遗传因素是导致NCPs的主要风险因素,但环境风险因子以及基因–环境交互作用异常也可导致NCPs。本文对神经嵴细胞和神经嵴病及其致病机制进行综述,为系统认知神经嵴细胞发育以及神经嵴病提供参考,为了解神经嵴病的病因以及开展有效防控提供科学支撑。     

Molecular Mechanism of Selenium Affecting the Synthesis of Flavonoids in G. biloba Leaves

Plant Molecular Biology Reporter - Flavonoids from Ginkgo biloba have antioxidant and free radical scavenging activity. In the present study, we used different concentrations of OS (organic...