Identification and Characterization of a Novel Single Domain Antibody Against Ebola Virus

Virologica Sinica - Ebola virus (EBOV) belongs to the Filoviridae family and causes severe illnesses such as hemorrhagic fever with a high mortality rate up to 90%. Now two antibody drugs termed...     

Fur Seal Feces-Associated Circular DNA Virus Identified in Pigs in Anhui,China

Fur seal feces-associated circular DNA virus(FSfa CV) is an unclassified circular replication-associated protein(Rep)-encoding single-stranded(CRESS) DNA virus that has been detected in mammals(fur seals and pigs). The biology and epidemiology of the virus remain largely unknown. To investigate the virus diversity among pigs in Anhui Province,China, we pooled 600 nasal samples in 2017 and detected viruses using viral metagenomic methods. From the assembled contigs, 12 showed notably high nucleotide acid sequence similarities to the genome sequences of FSfa CVs. Based on these sequences, a full-length genome sequence of the virus was then obtained using overlapping PCR and sequencing, and the virus was designated as FSfa CV-CHN(Gen Bank No. MK462122). This virus shared 91.3% and 90.9% genome-wide nucleotide sequence similarities with the New Zealand fur seal strain FSfa CV-as50 and the Japanese pig strain FSfa CVJPN1, respectively. It also clustered with the two previously identified FSfa CVs in a unique branch in the phylogenetic tree based on the open reading frame 2(ORF2), Rep-coding gene, and the genome of the reference CRESS DNA viruses.Further epidemiological investigation using samples collected in 2018 showed that the overall positive rate for the virus was 56.4%(111/197) in Anhui Province. This is the first report of FSfa CVs identified in pigs in China, and further epidemiological studies are warranted to evaluate the influence of the virus on pigs.     

The spatial variation of soil bacterial community assembly processes affects the accuracy of source tracking in ten major Chinese cities

Urban soils harbor billions of bacterial cells and millions of species. However, the distribution patterns and assembly processes of bacterial communities remain largely uncharacterized in urban soils. It is also unknown if we can use the bacteria to track soil sources to certain cities and districts. Here, Illumina MiSeq sequencing was used to survey soil bacterial communities from 529 random plots spanning 61 districts and 10 major cities in China. Over a 3,000 km range, community similarity declined with increasing geographic distance(Mantel r=0.62), and community composition was clustered by city(R~2=0.50). Within cities(100 km), the aforementioned biogeographic patterns were weakened. Process analysis showed that homogenizing dispersal and dispersal limitation dominated soil bacterial assembly at small and large spatial scales, respectively. Accordingly, the probabilities of accurately tracking random soil sources to certain cities and districts were 90.0% and 66.7%, respectively. When the tested samples originated from cities that were more than 1,265 km apart, the soil sources could be identified with nearly 100% accuracy. Overall, this study demonstrates the strong distance-decay relationship and the clear geographic zoning of urban soil bacterial communities among cities. The varied importance of different community assembly processes at multiple spatial scales strongly affects the accuracy of microbial source tracking.     

Autophagy in plants: Physiological roles and post‐translational regulation

In eukaryotes, autophagy helps maintain cellular homeostasis by degrading and recycling cytoplasmic materials via a tightly regulated pathway.Over the past few decades, significant progress has been made towards understanding the physiological functions and molecular regulation of autophagy in plant cells. Increasing evidence indicates that autophagy is essential for plant responses to several developmental and environmental cues, functioning in diverse processes such as senescence, male fertility, root meristem maintenance, responses to nutrient starvation,and biotic and abiotic stress. Recent studies have demonstrated that, similar to nonplant systems,the modulation of core proteins in the plant autophagy machinery by posttranslational modifications such as phosphorylation, ubiquitination,lipidation, S-sulfhydration, S-nitrosylation, and acetylation is widely involved in the initiation and progression of autophagy. Here, we provide an overview of the physiological roles and posttranslational regulation of autophagy in plants.     

A botanical medicine dragon’s blood exhibited clinical antithrombosis efficacy similar to low molecular weight heparin

Deep vein thrombosis(DVT) is a common complication following traumatic fracture with a 0.5%–1% annual incidence. Low molecular weight heparin(LMWH) is the most commonly used anticoagulation drug for DVT prevention, but treatment with LMWH is invasive. Our aim is to compare the antithrombotic effect of dragon's blood, an oral botanical anticoagulant medicine approved by the Chinese FDA, with LMWH in patients undergoing hip fracture surgery and to explore the molecular mechanisms of anticoagulation treatment. Our study recruited patients and divided them into LMWH and dragon's blood treatment group. Coagulation index tests, Doppler ultrasound and m RNA sequencing were performed before and after anticoagulation therapy. There was no significant difference in postoperative DVT incidence between the two groups(23.1% versus 15.4%,P=0.694). D-dimer(D-D) and fibrinogen degradation product(FDP) showed significant reductions in both groups after anticoagulation treatments. We identified SLC4 A1, PROS1, PRKAR2 B and seven other genes as being differentially expressed during anticoagulation therapy in both groups. Genes correlated with coagulation indexes were also identified. Dragon's blood and LMWH showed similar effects on DVT and produced similar gene expression changes in patients undergoing hip fracture surgery, indicating that dragon's blood is a more convenient antithrombosis medicine(oral) than LMWH(hypodermic injection).     

A whole-genome association approach for large-scale interspecies traits

Science China Life Sciences -     

High-altitude tree growth responses to climate change across the Hindu Kush Himalaya

兴都库什喜马拉雅地区高海拔树木生长对气候变化的响应 高海拔地区快速升温可能导致树木对温度响应更为敏感,而限制高海拔地区树木生长的关键气候因子以及气候变化对树木生长产生多大程度的影响尚不清楚。本研究在兴都库什喜马拉雅地区收集了73 个样点的树轮数据,包括3个优势属的树种(Abies属、Juniperus属和Picea属),样点海拔均在3000 m以上。 将时间动态规整(dynamic time warping)的方法用于建立亚区域年表,以考虑不同站点年表之间变化的同步 性。同时,定量分析了气候因子对树木生长的贡献以及树木生长与气候因子关系的时空动态。研究结果发现,73个站点年表可以聚为3类,且与其所处的生物气候区相对应,即西喜马拉雅地区,中东喜马拉雅地区和藏东南地区。在干旱的西喜马拉雅地区,树木生长与冬、春两季的降水呈正相关关系,而在湿润的藏东南地区,树木生长与冬季温度和春季降水呈正相关关系。树木生长受最低温度的影响最大,特别是冬季温度,其重要性从西到东呈现递增趋势。滑动窗口相关分析表明,在中西喜马拉雅地区,影响树木生长的冬季温度信号在减弱,然而在藏东南地区该信号随着1980年以来的快速升温而增强。本研究结果表明,若该地区升温持续,在西喜马拉雅地区可能会因变暖引起的水分亏缺而造成森林衰退,而在藏东南地区因树木生长得益于变暖而使得森林扩张。     

Effects of a Potential Host Gut-Derived Probiotic,Bacillus subtilis 6-3-1, on the Growth,Non-specific Immune Response and Disease Resistance of Hybrid Grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus♀ × Epinephelus lanceolatus♂)

Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins - A potential host-derived probiotic, Bacillus subtilis 6-3-1, was successfully screened from 768 isolates from the intestines of healthy hybrid grouper...