Plasma heme oxygenase-1 concentration in relation to impaired glucose regulation in a non-diabetic Chinese population

Background

Our previous study has recently shown that plasma heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), a stress-responsive protein, is elevated in individuals with type 2 diabetes. The current study aimed to examine the association between plasma HO-1 concentration and impaired glucose regulation (IGR) in non-diabetic individuals.

Methods

We conducted a case-control study including a total of 865 subjects (262 IGR individuals and 603 healthy controls) in a Chinese population. Basic characteristics were collected by questionnaire and standardized anthropometric measurements. Plasma HO-1 concentration was determined by ELISA.

Results

Plasma HO-1 concentration was significantly increased in IGR individuals compared with healthy controls (1.34 (0.81–2.29) ng/ml vs 0.98 (0.56–1.55) ng/ml, P<0.001). After adjustment for age, sex, and BMI, the ORs for IGR in the highest quartile of plasma HO-1 concentrations, compared with the lowest, was 3.42 (95% CI 2.11–5.54; P for trend <0.001). The trend remained significant even after additional adjustment for smoking, alcohol drinking, hypertension, family history of diabetes, lipid profiles and C-reactive protein. In the receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis, addition of plasma HO-1 concentration to a model with known risk factors yielded significantly improved discriminative value for IGR (area under the curves 0.75 (95% CI 0.71–0.78) vs. 0.72 (95% CI 0.69–0.76); P for difference = 0.026).

Conclusions

Elevated plasma HO-1 concentration is significantly associated with increased ORs for IGR. However, its clinical utility should be validated in further studies, especially in prospective cohort studies.     

模拟增温对青藏高原多年冻土区小嵩草和藏嵩草生长与抗氧化特征的影响

采用开顶式增温小室(OTCs)方法模拟气候变暖,分别选取青藏高原腹地风火山地区高寒小嵩草草甸和高寒藏嵩草沼泽草甸优势物种小嵩草和藏嵩草为研究对象,对比分析增温处理下两种优势物种叶片的形态与生理特征变化,从而探索高寒植物对气候变暖的内在响应机理.结果表明: 增温显著增加了小嵩草叶片长度(40.0%)和叶片数量(72.7%),也显著增加了藏嵩草株高(11.9%)和叶片长度(19.3%),促进了两种优势植物的形态生长和地上生物量增加.增温处理下小嵩草和藏嵩草叶片的膜透性(电导率),活性氧(过氧化氢和超氧阴离子自由基),超氧化物歧化酶、过氧化物酶、抗坏血酸过氧化物酶和过氧化氢酶活性,丙二醛含量均没有显著变化.但抗坏血酸和游离脯氨酸含量在藏嵩草叶片内分别显著增加了29.8%和53.8%,而在小嵩草叶片内没有明显变化.可见,增温下小嵩草和藏嵩草均能够维持正常的抗氧化水平,以维持该区域优势植物生长;但藏嵩草生理过程对增温更加敏感.     

紫色土线虫对长期不同施肥措施的响应

土壤线虫在农田生态系统中数量丰富且对土壤环境变化敏感, 可用于评估不同田间管理条件下的土壤健康。本文探究了紫色土区长期不同施肥措施及土壤团聚体粒径对线虫群落的分布及其生态功能多样性的影响。试验设置了5个施肥处理: 不施肥(对照, CK)、单施化肥(NPK)、生物炭 + 化肥(BCNPK)、商品猪粪 + 化肥(OMNPK)和秸秆 + 化肥(RSDNPK)。团聚体粒径分为: 原状土(BS)、大团聚体(> 2 mm; LA)和小团聚体(0.25-2 mm; SA)。结果表明, 与对照相比, 施肥可促进线虫数量增长, 其中单施化肥处理下增幅最小(66%); 有机物料与化肥配施对线虫数量的提升更为显著, 秸秆 + 化肥处理下增幅达206%。不同施肥处理间线虫类群相对丰度差异显著, 大小均表现为: 食细菌线虫(BA) > 杂食/捕食线虫(OP) > 植食线虫(PP) > 食真菌线虫(FU)。小团聚体较其他土壤团聚体的杂食/捕食线虫丰度更低, 食细菌线虫丰度较高。秸秆与化肥配施处理下线虫群落结构指数和富集指数显著增加, 且各施肥处理下线虫功能足迹呈现明显差异。有机肥与化肥配施(尤其是秸秆 + 化肥)可提高土壤养分供应且有利于形成稳定健康的土壤生态系统, 助推区域农业的可持续发展。     

Ghrelin治疗脑出血大鼠脑水肿及MMP-9表达的影响

目的:研究Ghrelin对大鼠脑出血后脑水肿及脑组织中基质金属蛋白酶-9(MMP-9)表达的影响。方法:选取雄性SD大鼠80只,随机分为对照组(NC组)20只、假手术组(SHAM组)20只、脑出血组(ICH组)20只、Ghrelin治疗组(Ghrelin组)20只。利用自体动脉血注入法建立大鼠脑出血模型;Ghrelin组于建立脑出血模型后经股静脉注射Ghrelin 10 nmol/Kg·d。分别于12 h、24 h、3d、5 d、7 d时间点根据Berderson评分法评估各组大鼠神经系统功能;利用干湿重法测定各组大鼠脑组织含水量;利用蛋白质免疫印迹法(WB)检测脑组织中MMP-9表达情况。结果:在12 h、24 h、3 d、5 d、7 d,ICH组、Ghrelin组大鼠Berderson评分及脑组织含水量高于NC组、SHAM组(P0.05);在5 d、7 d,ICH组大鼠Berderson评分及脑组织含水量高于Ghrelin组(P0.05)。WB结果表明在12 h、24 h、3 d、5 d、7 d,ICH组大鼠脑组织中MMP-9的表达均高于NC组、SHAM组(P0.05);Ghrelin组MMP-9的表达在12 h、24 h、3 d高于NC组、SHAM组(P0.05),在5 d、7 d,与NC组、SHAM组无明显差异(P0.05);在5 d、7 d,ICH组MMP-9表达高于Ghrelin组(P0.05)。结论:在本研究中,Ghrelin可以在5 d后降低脑出血大鼠脑组织中MMP-9的表达程度,从而减轻脑水肿,改善脑出血大鼠神经功能。     

陆地生态系统氮沉降增加的生态效应

 人类活动在全球范围内极大地改变着氮素从大气向陆地生态系统输入的方式和速率，人为固定的氮素正在不断积累，并对生态系统的结构和功 能产生显著影响。该文从以下几个方面综述了大气氮沉降增加对陆地生态系统的影响：1)氮输入增加可能影响植物生产力和生态系统碳蓄积能 力，生态系统响应的方向和程度取决于系统的初始氮状况(氮限制或氮饱和)以及当地的植被和土壤特征；2)持续氮输入有可能改变土壤氮循环 过程，降低土壤固持氮的能力，甚至导致土壤酸化、盐基离子损耗，进而影响到土壤有机碳的分解；3)高的氮沉降速率和持续氮输入都可能加 速含氮痕量气体的释放，但其影响程度受生态系统初始状态的影响(例如磷限制和氮限制)；4)氮沉降增加会影响生态系统的物种丰富度、植物 群落结构和动态，促进森林扩张，改变菌根真菌的物种多样性；5)持续氮输入带来的植物群落结构和植物生理特征的变化可能影响昆虫取食特 性，进而通过食物链改变生态系统的营养结构；6) 氮沉降增加对生态系统的影响并不是孤立存在的，它与CO₂浓度升高和O₃浓度变化有协同作 用，但难以从其协同效应中区分出各自的影响。最后，该文总结了我国的氮沉降研究现状，并对今后的研究前景提出了展望。     

Plio-Pleistocene vegetation changes in the North China Plain: Magnetostratigraphy, oxygen and carbon isotopic composition of pedogenic carbonates

The Plio-Pleistocene history of C₄ plant biomass in northwestern China has been documented from the loess-soil sequences of the Loess Plateau region. However, how C₄ plants evolved in the warmer and low-elevation eastern China monsoon zone is still poorly known mainly because of the unavailability of well-dated geological records. In this study, a 203.6-m core of floodplain deposits was recovered from the North China Plain near Tianjin and dated magnetostratigraphically. The results define a chronosequence for the last 3.3 Ma. The late Quaternary portion of the core consists of fluvio-marine sediments while the rest of the section (3.3-0.6 Ma) contains abundant paleosols formed on the floodplain, as confirmed by soil micromorphological evidence. The stable carbon and oxygen isotopic composition of pedogenic carbonates was measured to document vegetation and climate changes. The results reveal mixed C₃ and C₄ vegetation with an estimated C₄ abundance of ~ 40-60% from ~ 3.1 to ~ 2.2 Ma, and a subsequent gradual decline to ~ 25% until ~ 0.6 Ma. This trend is consistent with the data from the loess-soil sequences further west on the Loess Plateau, suggesting they are regionally significant changes. The lowering of growing-season temperature and/or drier conditions induced by global cooling would explain this overall decline.     

Effects of organic matter incorporation on nitrous oxide emissions from rice-wheat rotation ecosystems in China

Organic matter addition is thought to be an important regulator of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions from croplands. Contradictory effects, however, were reported in previous studies. To investigate the effects of crop residue management on N₂O emissions from rice-wheat rotation ecosystems, we conducted field experiments at three sites (Suzhou, Wuxi and Jiangdu) in the Yangtze River Delta, using static chamber and gas chromatography methods. Our data show that N₂O emissions throughout the rice season from plots treated with wheat straw application at a high rate (WS) prior to rice transplanting (1.1–2.0 kg N ha^?1) were significantly lower (P?<?0.05) than those from the control plots without organic matter addition or added with wheat straw at a moderate rate (1.6–2.9 kg N ha^?1). Furthermore, the WS treatments had a residual inhibitory effect on N₂O emissions in the following non-rice season, which consistently resulted in significantly lower emissions (P?<?0.05) compared to the control treatments (2.2–3.1 vs. 3.9–5.6 kg N ha^?1). In comparison to the control treatments, the WS treatments reduced both the seasonal and annual direct emission factors of the applied nitrogen (EF_d) by 50–68% (mean: 57%). The addition of compost (aerobically composted rice or wheat straw harvested in the last rotation) reduced the seasonal and annual EF_ds by 29–32%. Over the entire rice-wheat rotation cycle, annual N₂O emissions from the fertilized fields at the three sites ranged from 3.3?±?0.3 to 16.8?±?0.6 kg N ha^?1, with a coefficient of variation (CV) of 61%. Similarly, the EF_ds during the rice-wheat rotation cycle ranged from 0.4% to 2.5%, with a CV of 67%. These high spatial variations might have been related to: variations in soil properties, such as texture and soil organic carbon; management practices, such as straw treatments (i.e., compost versus fresh straw) and weather conditions, such as precipitation and rainfall distribution. Our results indicate that the incorporation of fresh wheat straw at a high rate during the rice season is an effective management practice for the mitigation of N₂O emissions in rice-wheat rotation systems. Whether this practice is also effective in reducing the overall global warming potential of net N₂O, CH₄ and CO₂ emissions needs to be seen through further studies.