REC8 enhances stemness and promotes metastasis of colorectal cancer through BTK/Akt/β-catenin signaling pathway

Cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) are often aberrantly expressed in cancer stem cells (CSCs) which are responsible for tumor metastasis. Rec8 meiotic recombination protein (REC8), a member of CTAs, shares distinct roles in various cancers, while its contribution to CSCs and colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. We found that overexpression of REC8 facilitated the migration and invasion of CRC cells (DLD-1 and SW480 cells) in vitro and promoted the liver metastasis of CRC in vivo. Moreover, REC8 is highly expressed in CRC stem-like cells and is required for the maintenance of CSC stemness. Mechanistic studies suggested that REC8 mediated through the activation of Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK). Inhibition of BTK by ibrutinib not only suppressed the migration and invasion-promoting ability, but also declined the increased expression of p-BTK, p-Akt, β-catenin, and CSC markers upon REC8 overexpression. Importantly, high expression of REC8 in cancerous tissues was related to advanced clinical stage and lymph node metastasis of 62 CRC patients, and REC8 was enriched in the cancerous cells positive for CSC markers. Collectively, our results indicate that REC8 promotes CRC metastasis by increasing cell stemness through BTK/Akt/β-catenin pathway.     

A Cytotaxonomic Study on Chinese Dioscorea L.—The Chromosome Numbers and Their Relation to the Origin and Evolution of the Genus

The chromosome numbers of 5 tuberous sections of Chinese Dioscorea, including 23 species and varieties, are reported in the present paper as a continuation of the previous reports. They are all polyploids with the basic number x=10. On the basis of analysis of chromosome numbers of whole genus, the rhizomatous diploid species of Sect. Stenophora Uline are presumed to be primitive taxa, while the polyploids of chromosome numbers 40-142 are considered derived groups as a result of hybridization between their ancestral diploids followed by chromosome doubling. Sect. Lasiophyton Pr. et Burk., Sect. Opsophyton UIine, Sect. Shannicorea Pr. et Burk., Sect. Combilium Pr. et Burk. and Sect. EnantiophylIum Uline may be the advanced groups. The chromosomal evolution and geographical distribution suggest that the primitivediploid might have originated in Hengduan Mountains of Asia, an old highland.     

Morphology of the Salt Gland of Spartina anglica Hubbard

Apart from roots, rhizome, stem, the adaxial surfaces of the leaf sheaths and palea in the body of the plant of Spartina anglica, the salt glands are found in all other aerial parts, especially, they are abundant in lamina. The gland is composed of two differential cells, a big basal cell and a small, dome- shaped cap cell which is located on the neck-like protrusion of the basal cell. Both of the cap cell and the basal cell have dense cytoplasm, large nucleus, numerous mitoehondria and a few other organelles. The basal cell has wall protuberances, and infoldings of the partitioning membrane system which extend throughout the basal cell, and separate the basal cell cytoplasm. A dominant feature of the cap cell is the distinct compach, nueleolus and its chromatin distributed throughout the karyoplasm. In shoulder and bottom of the basal cell there is no cuticular layer separating them from the epidermal cell and mesophyll cells, but in the walls connceting the basal cell with the epidermal cells and cap cell there are pronounced plasmodesmata. It is possible that devolopment of the gland in Spartina anglica is the same as in S. townsendii, and that pathway of secretion is similar to both of S. foliosa and S. townsendii.     

A G-type lectin receptor-like kinase regulates the perception of oomycete apoplastic expansin-like proteins

Phytophthora capsici is one of the most harmful pathogens in agriculture, which threatens the safe production of multiple crops and causes serious economic losses worldwide. Here, we identified a P. capsici expansin-like protein, Pc EXLX1, by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry from Nicotiana benthamiana apoplastic fluid infected with P. capsici. Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/crispr associated protein9(CRISPR/Cas9)-mediated Pc EXLX1 knockout mutants exhibit...     

Impacts of Cash Transfer Programs on Rural Livelihoods: a Case Study in the Brazilian Amazon Estuary

We conducted a large household survey in a region of the Amazon estuary in Brazil to investigate the dependence of small farming households on government cash transfers and to identify the main factors that lead to better livelihood outcomes. The study examined the factors that contribute to heterogeneous household livelihoods and patterns of dependence on cash transfer programs. Multinomial logistic regression was used to evaluate household attributes affecting the level of dependence on cash transfers. Results indicate that households engage in a diversity of livelihood strategies, and vary in dependence on cash transfers. Lower levels of dependency are associated with higher levels of education and income from off-farm activities as well as larger property sizes and holdings in the várzea. Recognition of the causes and potential range of dependence on cash transfer programs adds decision-making capacity for policy makers seeking avenues to reduce dependence and increase program effectiveness.