Suppression of DRR1 results in the accumulation of insoluble ubiquitinated proteins,which impairs drought stress tolerance

Drought stress has detrimental effects on plants. Although the abscisic acid (ABA)‐mediated drought response is well established, defensive mechanisms to cope with dehydration‐induced proteotoxicity have been rarely studied. DRR1 was identified as an Arabidopsis drought‐induced gene encoding an ER‐localized RING‐type E3 Ub ligase. Suppression of DRR1 markedly reduced tolerance to drought and proteotoxic stress without altering ABA‐mediated germination and stomatal movement. Proteotoxicity‐ and dehydration‐induced insoluble ubiquitinated protein accumulation was more obvious in DRR1 loss‐of‐function plants than in wild‐type plants. These results suggest that DRR1 is involved in an ABA‐independent drought stress response possibly through the mitigation of dehydration‐induced proteotoxic stress.     

Structure of plant photosystem I−light harvesting complex I supercomplex at 2.4 Å resolution

Photosystem I (PSI) is one of the two photosystems in photosynthesis, and performs a series of electron transfer reactions leading to the reduction of ferredoxin. In higher plants, PSI is surrounded by four light-harvesting complex I (LHCI) subunits, which harvest and transfer energy efficiently to the PSI core. The crystal structure of PSI-LHCI supercomplex has been analyzed up to 2.6 Å resolution, providing much information on the arrangement of proteins and cofactors in this complicated supercomplex. Here we have optimized crystallization conditions, and analyzed the crystal structure of PSI-LHCI at 2.4 Å resolution. Our structure showed some shift of the LHCI, especially the Lhca4 subunit, away from the PSI core, suggesting the indirect connection and inefficiency of energy transfer from this Lhca subunit to the PSI core. We identified five new lipids in the structure, most of them are located in the gap region between the Lhca subunits and the PSI core. These lipid molecules may play important roles in binding of the Lhca subunits to the core, as well as in the assembly of the supercomplex. The present results thus provide novel information for the elucidation of the mechanisms for the light-energy harvesting, transfer and assembly of this supercomplex.     

Longitudinal virological changes and underlying pathogenesis in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Guangzhou,China

Science China Life Sciences - Prolonged viral RNA shedding and recurrence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients have been...     

Adult-repopulating lymphoid potential of yolk sac blood vessels is not confined to arterial endothelial cells

Science China Life Sciences - During embryogenesis, hematopoietic stem progenitor cells (HSPCs) are believed to be derived from hemogenic endothelial cells (HECs). Moreover, arterial feature is...     

Responses of soil labile organic carbon and water-stable aggregates to reforestation in southern subtropical China

中国南亚热带土壤易分解有机碳和水稳性团聚体对造林的响应 造林被认为可以提高土壤碳稳定性并促进土壤碳累积。然而,实验结果差异很大,造林在提高土壤碳稳定性方面的作用仍存在争议。因此,在森林生态系统中不同土壤碳库对造林如何响应目前尚不清楚。基于此,本文对亚热带地区的尾叶桉林(Eucalyptus urophylla)、厚荚相思林(Acacia crassicarpa)、 红锥林(Castanopsis hystrix)、10树种混交林和自然恢复草坡等5种不同林型的土壤碳组分进行了研究,评估其不同土层(0–10、10–20、20–40 和40–60 cm)中的土壤易分解有机碳(容易被高锰酸钾氧化的有机碳ROC和土壤可溶性有机碳DOC)及土壤团聚体相关的碳对造林的响应。实验结果表明,造林(与自然恢复草坡比较)和林型并没有显著影响土壤ROC浓度,而自然恢复草坡土壤的DOC浓度在4个土层中均最高。0–10 cm土层中各径级的土壤团聚体其碳(C)浓度均是红锥林最高。此外,在任一土层中,林型对不同径级土壤水稳性团聚体比例的影响均不显著。但是土壤深度显著改变土壤团聚体的分布,0–20 cm土层主要为>0.25 mm粒径的团聚体,20–60 cm土层则是0.053–2 mm粒径的团聚体占主导。这些结果显示造林和林型影响土壤DOC 和团聚体C,而且它们相比于ROC对造林的响应更为敏感。研究发现,与自然恢复相比,人工林降低了土壤DOC浓度,暗示它可能会减少土壤C的淋溶损失。此外,红锥林能够通过物理保护提高表土层中土壤碳的稳定性。本研究为关注土壤碳汇功能时的中国南亚热带地区造林树种选择提供了有价值的信息。     

Erratum to: Migrasomes: the knowns,the known unknowns and the unknown unknowns: a personal perspective

Science China Life Sciences - The original article has been corrected.     

OSMRβ mutants enhance basal keratinocyte differentiation via inactivation of the STAT5/KLF7 axis in PLCA patients

Dear Editor, Primary localized cutaneous amyloidosis (PLCA) is a skin-limited disorder characterized by deposition of amyloid material in the superficial dermis.According to clinical characteristics,PLCA is divided into lichen,macular,and nodular amyloidosis.PLCA is found worldwide but has a higher incidence in South America and Southeast Asia,such as in Brazil and China (Chang et al.,2014;Tey et al.,2016).     

Molecular deconvolution of the neutralizing antibodies induced by an inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus vaccine

Dear Editor, The rapid emergence and persistence of the pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2) has had enormous impacts on global health and the economy.Effective vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 are urgently needed to control the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) pandemic,and multiple vaccines have been found to be efficacious in preventing symptomatic COVID-19(Polack et al.,2020;Wu et al.,2020;Jones and Roy,2021).We have developed a traditional beta-propiolactone-inacti-vated aluminum hydroxide-adjuvanted whole-virion SARS-CoV-2 vaccine (BBIBP-CorV),which elicited protective immune responses in clinical trials (Wang et al.,2020;Xia et al.,2021).The vaccine has been granted conditional approvals or emergency use authorizations (EUAs) in China and other countries.     

Mechanisms of Candida Resistance to Antimycotics and Promising Ways to Overcome It: The Role of Probiotics

Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins - Pathogenic Candida and infections caused by those species are now considered as a serious threat to public health. The treatment of candidiasis is...     

In vitro Inhibition of Clinical Isolates of Otitis Media Pathogens by the Probiotic Streptococcus salivarius BLIS K12

Otitis media is a common childhood infection, frequently requiring antibiotics. With high rates of antibiotic prescribing and increasing antibiotic resistance, new strategies in otitis media prevention and treatment are needed. The aim of this study was to assess the in vitro inhibitory activity Streptococcus salivarius BLIS K12 against otitis media pathogens. Efficacy of the bacteriocin activity of S. salivarius BLIS K12 against the otitis media isolates was assessed using the deferred antagonism test. Overall, 48% of pathogenic isolates exhibited some growth inhibition by S. salivarius BLIS K12. S. salivarius BLIS K12 can inhibit the in vitro growth of the most common pathogens.