Correlations between glycolysis with clinical traits and immune function in bladder urothelial carcinoma

Background: Glycolysis was a representative hallmark in the tumor microenvironment (TME), and we aimed to explore the correlations between glycolysis with immune activity and clinical traits in bladder urothelial carcinoma (BLCA).Methods: Our study obtained glycolysis scores for each BLCA samples from TCGA by a single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) algorithm, based on a glycolytic gene set. The relationship between glycolysis with prognosis, clinical characteristics, and immune function were investigated subsequently.Results: We found that enhanced glycolysis was associated with poor prognosis and metastasis in BLCA. Moreover, glycolysis had a close correlation with immune function, and enhanced glycolysis increased immune activities. In other words, glycolysis had a positive correlation with immune activities. Immune checkpoints such as IDO1, CD274, were up-regulated in high-glycolysis group as well.Conclusion: We speculated that in BLCA, elevated glycolysis enhanced immune function, which caused tumor cells to overexpress immune checkpoints to evade immune surveillance. Inhibition of glycolysis might be a promising assistant for immunotherapy in bladder cancer.     

Screening and heterologous expression of flavone synthase and flavonol synthase to catalyze hesperetin to diosmetin

Biotechnology Letters - In this study, 44 flavone synthases (FNS) and flavonol synthases (FLS) from different origins were collected. The instability index and conserved domain of the enzymes were...     

Development and characterization of 33 polymorphic microsatellite markers in Trachurus japonicus by SLAF-seq technology

Trachurus japonicus is an economically important fish in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. However, its resources have declined seriously and there is an urgent need for a wide-range of investigations of the existing genetic resources. This requires a large number of diverse molecular markers with high discriminating power. In this study, we identified 43,264 perfect SSRs in T. japonicus genome using SLAF-seq technology. Of these, we randomly selected 106 SSRs (tri-nucleotide to hexa-nucleotide) to test for polymorphism. Eventually, we successfully developed a total of 33 loci including 8 tri-nucleotide and 25 long repeat motifs (tetra-nucleotide to hexa-nucleotide). The number of alleles (Na) of these loci ranged from 4 to 24 (mean 12.6). The observed heterozygosity (Ho) and expected heterozygosity (He) varied from 0.258 to 0.969 (mean 0.723) and from 0.452 to 0.962 (mean 0.827), respectively. All loci except TJ6-7 were highly informative (PIC > 0.5). These results showed that the shortlisted 33 loci exhibited moderate to relatively high genetic diversity, of which 18 were regarded as highly polymorphic and well-resolved. In summary, these diverse and potential microsatellites detected in our study provide substantial genetic basis for the screening of polymorphic SSR markers of T. japonicus and also provide a powerful tool to perform further studies on the genetic resource assessment and conservation of T. japonicus.     

PARP1 rs1136410 C/C genotype associated with an increased risk of esophageal cancer in smokers

Molecular Biology Reports - DNA repair system plays a crucial role in maintaining genomic integrity and stability and in protecting against cancer. Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP1) functions...     

Elastin-like polypeptide and γ-zein fusions significantly increase recombinant protein accumulation in soybean seeds

Transgenic Research - Soybean seeds are an ideal host for the production of recombinant proteins because of their high content of proteins, long-term stability of seed proteins under ambient...     

A chloride efflux transporter,BIG RICE GRAIN 1, is involved in mediating grain size and salt tolerance in rice

Grain size is determined by the size and number of cells in the grain. The regulation of grain size is crucial for improving crop yield; however, the genes and molecular mechanisms that control grain size remain elusive. Here, we report that a member of the detoxification efflux carrier /Multidrug and Toxic Compound Extrusion (DTX/MATE) family transporters, BIG RICE GRAIN 1 (BIRG1), negatively influences grain size in rice (Oryza sativa L.). BIRG1 is highly expressed in reproductive organs and roots. In birg1 grain, the outer parenchyma layer cells of spikelet hulls are larger than in wild-type (WT) grains, but the cell number is unaltered. When expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes, BIRG1 exhibits chloride efflux activity. Consistent with this role of BIRG1, the birg1 mutant shows reduced tolerance to salt stress at a toxic chloride level. Moreover, grains from birg1 plants contain a higher level of chloride than those of WT plants when grown under normal paddy field conditions, and the roots of birg1 accumulate more chloride than those of WT under saline conditions. Collectively, the data suggest that BIRG1 in rice functions as a chloride efflux transporter that is involved in mediating grain size and salt tolerance by controlling chloride homeostasis.     

Genomes of 12 fig wasps provide insights into the adaptation of pollinators to fig syconia

Figs and fig pollinators are one of the few classic textbook examples of obligate pollination mutualism. The specific dependence of fig pollinators on the relatively safe living environment with sufficient food sources in the enclosed fig syconia implies that they are vulnerable to habitat changes. However, there is still no extensive genomic evidence to reveal the evolutionary footprint of this long-term mutually beneficial symbiosis in fig pollinators. In fig syconia, there are also non-pollinator species. The non-pollinator species differ in their evolutionary and life histories from pollinators. We conducted comparative analyses on 11 newly sequenced fig wasp genomes and one previously published genome. The pollinators colonized the figs approximately 66.9 million years ago, consistent with the origin of host figs. Compared with nonpollinators, many more genes in pollinators were subject to relaxed selection. Seven genes were absent in pollinators in response to environmental stress and immune activation. Pollinators had more streamlined gene repertoires in the innate immune system, chemosensory toolbox, and detoxification system. Our results provide genomic evidence for the differentiation between pollinators and nonpollinators. The data suggest that owing to the long-term adaptation to the fig, some genes related to functions no longer required are absent in pollinators.