Identification of differentially expressed genes in primary Sjögren's syndrome

Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a chronic systemic autoimmune disease that affects exocrine glands. To study the molecular mechanism and identify crucial genes/pathways in pSS pathogenesis, the microarray-based whole-genome gene expression profiles from salivary glands of patients with pSS and non-sicca controls were retrieved. After normalization and subsequent batch effect adjustment, significance analysis of microarrays method was applied to five available datasets, and 379 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. The 300 upregulated DEGs were enriched in Gene Ontology terms of immune and inflammatory responses, including antigen processing and presentation, interferon-mediated signaling pathway, and chemotaxis. Previously reported pSS-associated genes, including HLA-DRA, TAP2, PRDM1, and IFI16, were found to be significantly upregulated. The downregulated DEGs were enriched in pathways of salivary secretion, carbohydrate digestion and absorption, and starch and sucrose metabolism, implying dysfunction of salivary glands during pathogenesis. Next, a protein-protein interaction network was constructed, and B2M, an upregulated DEG, was shown to be a hub, suggesting its potential involvement in pSS development. In summary, we found the activation of pSS-associated genes in pathogenesis, and provide clues for salivary glands dysfunction. Experimental investigation on the identified DEGs in this study will deepen our understanding on pSS.     

Emotional Noun Processing: An ERP Study with Rapid Serial Visual Presentation

Reading is an important part of our daily life, and rapid responses to emotional words have received a great deal of research interest. Our study employed rapid serial visual presentation to detect the time course of emotional noun processing using event-related potentials. We performed a dual-task experiment, where subjects were required to judge whether a given number was odd or even, and the category into which each emotional noun fit. In terms of P1, we found that there was no negativity bias for emotional nouns. However, emotional nouns elicited larger amplitudes in the N170 component in the left hemisphere than did neutral nouns. This finding indicated that in later processing stages, emotional words can be discriminated from neutral words. Furthermore, positive, negative, and neutral words were different from each other in the late positive complex, indicating that in the third stage, even different emotions can be discerned. Thus, our results indicate that in a three-stage model the latter two stages are more stable and universal.     

基于地形梯度的黄河流域中段植被覆盖时空分异特征——以延安市为例

植被恢复是黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展的关键,深入研究植被的时空分异特征具有重要的现实意义。本研究以4期Landsat TM/OLI为遥感数据源,采用像元二分模型估算植被覆盖度,运用转移矩阵、地学信息图谱和重心迁移模型分析1988—2018年黄河流域中段延安市植被覆盖的时空演变特征;并结合地形数据,利用地形分布指数分析高程、坡度上植被覆盖的空间响应规律。结果表明: 研究期间,延安市植被覆盖呈北低南高的空间分布特征,植被覆盖受政策影响而大幅增高;1988—2018年,延安市植被变化模式以持续向好和稳定不变为主导,有50%的区域植被覆盖情况改善,83%的高植被覆盖区域保持稳定。在各高程和坡度等级上,高植被覆盖的分布优势度随时间变化而增大;在各坡度等级上,植被增加百分比和植被稳定性随坡度增加而增大。延安不同等级植被覆盖的迁移方向与植被覆盖整体的迁移趋势基本一致,总体向北偏西转移。延安植被建设已取得显著成效,但北部植被覆盖状况仍待提高,优化植被类型和结构是未来植被建设的重要方向。     

Toward a phylogeny and biogeography of Diaphanosoma (Crustacea: Cladocera)

Aquatic Ecology - Diaphanosoma s.l., with 40+? described species, is the largest genus of the Sididae and the Ctenopoda, similar in many ways to the anomopod genus Daphnia. Here, we offer a c...     

Association between BMP15 Gene Polymorphism and Reproduction Traits and Its Tissues Expression Characteristics in Chicken

BMP15 (Bone morphogenetic protein 15) is an oocyte-secreted growth factor required for ovarian follicle development and ovulation in mammals, but its effects on reproduction in chickens are unclear. In this study, the association between BMP15 polymorphisms and reproduction traits were analyzed, and its expression characteristics in different tissues were explored in LaiWu Black chickens. Three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in four hundred LaiWu Black chickens. One SNP (NC_006091.3:g.1773T>C) located in exon 2 which was significantly associated with egg weight at first egg (EWFE) (P = 0.0389), was novel. Diplotypes based on the three SNPs were found to be significantly associated with egg weight at age of 43W (EW43) (P = 0.0058). The chickens with H3H3 diplotype had their first egg 0.57 days later than chickens with H5H5 diplotype and 1.21 days-3.96 days earlier than the other five diplotype chickens. The egg production at age of 43W (E43), egg production at age of 46W (E46) and egg production at age of 48W (E48) for chickens with H3H3 diplotype were the highest among all the chickens, and the E48 of chickens with H3H3 diplotype had 11.83 eggs higher than chickens with H1H5 diplotype. RT-qPCR results showed that the expression level of BMP15 gene in ovarian follicle was in the order of 4 mm>6 mm -8 mm> 15 mm -19 mm> 23 mm -29 mm > 33 mm -34 mm in diameter. The mRNA level in follicles of 4 mm and 6–8 mm in diameter were significantly higher than that in the other follicles (P<0.01). In the same week, the highest mRNA level was found in the ovary, and it was significantly different from that found in the liver and oviduct (P<0.01). Our results indicate that BMP15 plays a vital role in the development of ovary and follicles, especially in the development of primary follicles. H3H3 may be an potential advantageous molecular marker for improving reproduction traits in chickens.     

棕榈酰化修饰对G蛋白偶联受体功能的调节作用

G蛋白偶联受体(G-protein-coupled receptors,GPCRs)作为跨膜蛋白,其结构和功能同时受相互作用的蛋白质和脂质分子调控.S-棕榈酰化(S-palmitoylation)能够影响GPCRs与信号蛋白及膜脂分子的相互作用,在GPCRs相关的多项生理进程中发挥重要调节作用.棕榈酸与GPCRs的半胱氨酸间形成不稳定的硫酯键,其修饰动力学过程受棕榈酰转移酶(protein acly transferases,PATs)与硫酯酶(thioesterases)之间的可逆性双重调控,与受体活性及生理状态密切相关.棕榈酰化修饰多发生在GPCRs的C末端,通过棕榈酸侧链插入到质膜内侧而形成第4和/或第5个胞内环,从而影响GPCRs的构象,促进其正确折叠与成熟,并对GPCRs胞内转运、分选、下游信号转导、失敏、内化、寡聚化等活动产生影响.此外,棕榈酰化还与磷酸化、泛素化及亚硝基化等多种翻译后修饰机制相互作用,共同参与调节GPCRs的功能.GPCRs的棕榈酰化修饰酶学机制以及GPCRs蛋白复合体棕榈酰化修饰胞内动力学过程将是未来的研究热点.