Long noncoding RNA PTENP1 affects the recovery of spinal cord injury by regulating the expression of miR-19b and miR-21

Exosomes derived from differentiated P12 cells and MSCs were proved to suppress apoptosis of neuron cells, and phosphatase and tensin homolog pseudogene 1 (PTENP1) was reported to inhibit cell proliferation. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of PTENP1 in the process of post-spinal cord injury (SCI) recovery, so as to evaluate the therapeutic effects of exosomes derived from MSCs transfected with PTENP1 short hairpin RNA (shRNA), as a type of novel biomarkers in the treatment of SCI. Electron microscopy was used to observe the morphology of different exosomes. Real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blot, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assays, flow cytometry, Nissl staining, immunohistochemistry assay, and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling assay were conducted to investigate and validate the underlying molecular signaling pathway. PTENP1-shRNA downregulated PTENP1 and PTEN while upregulating miR-21 and miR-19b. PTENP1-shRNA also accelerated cell apoptosis and reduced cell viability. In addition, PTENP1 reduced the miR-21 and miR-19b expression by directly targeting miR-21 and miR-19b. Meanwhile, both miR-21 and miR-19b reduced the expression of PTEN by directly targeting the 3′-untranslated region of PTEN. Furthermore, PTEN level and apoptosis index of neuron cells was the highest in the SCI group, while the treatment with exosomes+PTENP1-shRNA reduced the PTEN expression to a level similar to that in the sham group. Finally, PTENP1 inhibited miR-21 and miR-19b expression but upregulated PTEN expression. The upregulation of miR-21/miR-19b also suppressed the apoptosis of neuron cells by downregulating the PTEN expression. PTENP1 is involved in the recovery of SCI by regulating the expression of miR-19b and miR-21, and exosomes from PTENP1-shRNA-transfected cells may be used as a novel biomarker in SCI treatment.     

Prevalence of Post-Stroke Cognitive Impairment in China: A Community-Based,Cross-Sectional Study

International hospital-based studies have indicated a high risk of cognitive impairment after stroke, evidence from community-based studies in China is scarce. To determine the prevalence of post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) and its subtypes in stroke survivors residing in selected rural and urban Chinese communities, we conducted a community-based, cross-sectional study in 599 patients accounting for 48% of all stroke survivors registered in the 4 communities, who had suffered confirmed strokes and had undergone cognitive assessments via the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Hachinski Ischemia Scale (HIS). Detection of PSCI was based on scores in these neuropsychological scales. Factors potentially impacting on occurrence of PSCI were explored by comparing demographic characteristics, stroke features, and cardiovascular risk factors between patients with and without PSCI. The overall prevalence of PSCI was 80.97% (95%CI: 77.82%-84.11%), while that of non-dementia PSCI (PSCI-ND) and post-stroke vascular dementia (PSD) was 48.91% (95%CI: 44.91%-52.92%) and 32.05% (95%CI: 28.32%-35.79%), respectively. Prior stroke and complications during the acute phase were independent risk factors for PSCI. The risk of recurrent stroke survivors having PSCI was 2.7 times higher than for first-episode survivors, and it was 3 times higher for those with complications during the acute phase than for those without. The higher prevalence of PSCI in this study compared with previous Chinese studies was possibly due to the combined effects of including rural stroke survivors, a longer period from stroke onset, and different assessment methods. There is an urgent need to recognize and prevent PSCI in stroke patients, especially those with recurrent stroke and complications during the acute phase.     

Genome‐wide scans to detect positive selection in Large White and Tongcheng pigs

Due to the direction, intensity, duration and consistency of genetic selection, especially recent artificial selection, the production performance of domestic pigs has been greatly changed. Therefore, we reasoned that there must be footprints or selection signatures that had been left during domestication. In this study, with porcine 60K BeadChip genotyping data from both commercial Large White and local Chinese Tongcheng pigs, we calculated the extended haplotype homozygosity values of the two breeds using the long‐range haplotype method to detect selection signatures. We found 34 candidate regions, including 61 known genes, from Large White pigs and 25 regions comprising 57 known genes from Tongcheng pigs. Many selection signatures were found on SSC1, SSC4, SSC7 and SSC14 regions in both populations. According to quantitative trait loci and network pathway analyses, most of the regions and genes were linked to growth, reproduction and immune responses. In addition, the average genetic differentiation coefficient F_ST was 0.254, which means that there had already been a significant differentiation between the breeds. The findings from this study can contribute to further research on molecular mechanisms of pig evolution and domestication and also provide valuable references for improvement of their breeding and cultivation.     

pH-dependent structural transition in rabbit skeletal troponin C

Although the crystal structure of troponin C is known (Herzberg, O., and James, M. N. G. (1985) Nature 313, 653-659; Sundaralingam, M., Bergstrom, R., Strasburg, G., Rao, S. T., Roychowdhury, P., Greaser, M., and Wang, B. C. (1985) Science 227, 945-948), its structure in solution, particularly under physiological conditions, has not been established. We examined the conformation of troponin C under a variety of conditions by measuring the distance between sites located in the N- and C-terminal domains using the technique of resonance energy transfer. The donor was the luminescent lanthanide ion Tb3+ bound at the low affinity metal sites in the N-terminal domain. The acceptor was 4-dimethylaminophenylazophenyl-4'-maleimide attached at Cys-98 in the C-terminal domain. The distance between these sites was found to be greater than 5.2 nm at pH 5.0, 2.7 nm at pH 6.8 for uncomplexed troponin C, and 4.1 nm for troponin C complexed with troponin I at pH 6.8. These findings suggest that uncomplexed troponin C undergoes a pH-dependent transition from an elongated conformation, compatible with the crystal structure at acidic pH, to a more compact conformation at neutral pH. When complexed with troponin I, troponin C adopts a conformation of intermediate length compared to the uncomplexed molecule at pH 6.8 and 5.0.     

点状气单胞菌引起虹鳟感染症及其病原学机制的初步研究

对山西省朔县省虹鳟试验场1987年8月在亲鱼中爆发的一次流行病进行了病原菌分离、培养、毒力试验和详细的生理生化测定,确定点状气单胞菌为其病原菌。并对该菌胞外产物的致病性进行了研究,通过测定其溶血活性、酪蛋白酶活性、对鱼致死性以及对其引起的组织病理学变化的观察,初步确定了胞外产物与该菌侵袭力的相关性。     

湖泊和地下水中异养细菌群落结构和生理特征的比较研究

对武汉东湖三个定点观测站和潜江市一深水机井中异养细菌群落的种群组成、对不同基质的反应、菌株和群落的生理特征和活力水平等方面比较研究结果表明:环境差异较小的东湖Ⅰ、Ⅱ、Ⅲ站异养细菌群落间的差异亦较小,具有类似的结构特征和生理活力水平,对特定基质表现了相似的作用模式;地下水中的异养细菌群落在上述几方面均显示了明显的差别。此外,在异养细菌群落结构和功能研究方法上亦是有益的探讨。     

以突触前排放的消失设定海马脑片缺氧损伤时间及应用实例

刺激Schaffer侧支,记录大鼠海马脑片CA_1区的突触前排放(presynaptic volley,PV)和突触后群锋电位(population spikes,PS),观察缺氧后PS和PV的变化及复氧30min后脑片PS的恢复,缺氧持续到PV消失1,2,3或4min,复氧后脑片恢复率分别为100％,11.5％,0％,0％。可见,缺氧后 PV 消失2min为损伤的关键时刻。提前1min终止缺氧,全部脑片的PS可以恢复,延迟1min终止缺氧,则全部脑片的PS不能恢复。这种方法是根据每个脑片的电反应确定其总的缺氧时间,故每个脑片的缺氧时间略有变动。与每次采用相同缺氧时间的传统方法相比,此方法脑片恢复率的稳定性与重复性均较好。用此方法发现美西律10和100μmol/L能增加复氧后PS恢复率,对突触功能的缺氧损伤具有保护作用。