Acoustic sequences in non‐human animals: a tutorial review and prospectus

Animal acoustic communication often takes the form of complex sequences, made up of multiple distinct acoustic units. Apart from the well‐known example of birdsong, other animals such as insects, amphibians, and mammals (including bats, rodents, primates, and cetaceans) also generate complex acoustic sequences. Occasionally, such as with birdsong, the adaptive role of these sequences seems clear (e.g. mate attraction and territorial defence). More often however, researchers have only begun to characterise – let alone understand – the significance and meaning of acoustic sequences. Hypotheses abound, but there is little agreement as to how sequences should be defined and analysed. Our review aims to outline suitable methods for testing these hypotheses, and to describe the major limitations to our current and near‐future knowledge on questions of acoustic sequences. This review and prospectus is the result of a collaborative effort between 43 scientists from the fields of animal behaviour, ecology and evolution, signal processing, machine learning, quantitative linguistics, and information theory, who gathered for a 2013 workshop entitled, ‘Analysing vocal sequences in animals’. Our goal is to present not just a review of the state of the art, but to propose a methodological framework that summarises what we suggest are the best practices for research in this field, across taxa and across disciplines. We also provide a tutorial‐style introduction to some of the most promising algorithmic approaches for analysing sequences. We divide our review into three sections: identifying the distinct units of an acoustic sequence, describing the different ways that information can be contained within a sequence, and analysing the structure of that sequence. Each of these sections is further subdivided to address the key questions and approaches in that area. We propose a uniform, systematic, and comprehensive approach to studying sequences, with the goal of clarifying research terms used in different fields, and facilitating collaboration and comparative studies. Allowing greater interdisciplinary collaboration will facilitate the investigation of many important questions in the evolution of communication and sociality.     

MiR‐802 causes nephropathy by suppressing NF‐κB‐repressing factor in obese mice and human

Obesity is associated with significant microvascular complications including renal injuries and may induce end‐stage renal disease. Emerging studies have demonstrated microRNAs (miRNAs) are potential mediators in the pathophysiological process of nephropathy. The present study aimed to investigate the role of miR‐802 in obesity‐related nephropathy and potential molecular mechanisms. Through utilizing obese mouse model and human subjects, we explored the therapeutic benefits and clinical application of miR‐802 in protecting against nephropathy. Renal miR‐802 level was positively correlated with functional parameters, including blood urea nitrogen and creatinine in obese mice. Specific silencing of renal miR‐802 improved high fat diet (HFD)‐induced renal dysfunction, structural disorders and fibrosis. The up‐regulated inflammatory response and infiltrated macrophages were also significantly decreased in miR‐802 inhibitor‐treated obese mice. Mechanistically, miR‐802 directly bond to 3?‐UTR of NF‐κB‐repressing factor (NRF) and suppressed its expression. In clinical study, the circulating miR‐802 level was significantly increased in obese subjects, and positively correlated with plasma creatinine level but negatively correlated with creatinine clearance. Taken together, our findings provided evidence that miR‐802/NRF signalling was an important pathway in mediating obesity‐related nephropathy. It is a possible useful clinical approach of treating miR‐802 inhibitor to combat nephropathy.     

Lipopolysaccharide upregulates the proliferation,migration, and odontoblastic differentiation of NG2+ cells from human dental pulp in vitro

NG2⁺ cells have been proven to differentiate into odontoblasts in vivo, and their contribution to odontoblasts is significantly increased, especially after tooth injury. However, their characteristics in vitro, especially under an inflammatory environment, are still not fully understood. Therefore, this study aimed to explore their proliferation, migration, and odontoblastic differentiation ability after treatment with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in vitro. In our study, NG2 ⁺ cells were isolated from the human dental pulp by magnetic‐activated cell sorting, and these isolated cells were proven to be NG2 ⁺ by immunostaining. When compared with human dental pulp cells (hDPCs), the NG2 ⁺ cells showed no significant differences in cell migration with or without LPS incubation, but their proliferative ability was weaker. When treated with LPS, NG2 ⁺ cells expressed elevated levels of pro‐inflammatory cytokines including interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β), IL‐6, IL‐8, and tumor necrosis factor‐α, and among these, the expression of IL‐1β and IL‐6 were higher than that of hDPCs. Their multipotent differentiation potential was confirmed by the induction of odontoblastic and adipogenic differentiation, and LPS increased their odontoblastic differentiation capacity. In the odontoblastic differentiation process, Wnt5a, BMP2, and BMP7 mRNA were increased, while the canonical Wnt‐related genes were decreased. In conclusion, the LPS stimulation promotes the migration, proliferative, and odontoblastic differentiation ability of NG2 ⁺ cells from the human dental pulp in vitro, and bone morphogenetic protein and the noncanonical Wnt pathway may be involved in their odontoblastic differentiation. These results indicated their special roles in tooth injury repair and potential application in pulp regeneration.     

Fitness costs associated with acetyl‐coenzyme A carboxylase mutations endowing herbicide resistance in American sloughgrass (Beckmannia syzigachne Steud.)

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Molecular basis for substrate discrimination by glycine transporters

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Regulation of cyclic longitudinal mechanical stretch on proliferation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells

Mechanical stimulation is critical to both physiological and pathological states of living cells. Although a great deal of research has been done on biological and biochemical regulation of the behavior of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), the influence of biomechanical factors on their behavior is still not fully documented. In this study, we investigated the modulation of mechanical stretch magnitude, frequency, and duration on the human marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) proliferation by an in vitro model system using a mechanical stretch loading apparatus, and optimized the stretch regime for the proliferation of hMSCs. We applied 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)- 2,5-diphenyl tetrasodium bromide (MTT) assay to estimate the overall proliferative effects of the stretch on hMSCs. We found that fibronectin coating increased adhesion to silicone chamber surface, however, it did not show significant effect on proliferation of hMSCs. A frequency of 1 Hz was more effective in stimulating hMSCs proliferation. At 1 Hz, 5% strain for 15, 30, 60 min, the significant increase of hMSCs proliferation was observed. Proliferation was enhanced at 1 Hz, 10% strain for 15, 30 min, while decreased for 60 min. At 1 Hz, 15% strain, 15 min stretch resulted in the decrease of proliferation, and 30 min and 60 min stretch showed an increased proliferation. Long time (12 and 24 h) strain application blocked the proliferation. These results indicate that mechanical stretch plays an important role in hMSCs growth and proliferation; an appropriate mechanical stretch regime could be a novel approach to promoting proliferation of hMSCs in vitro.