Correlations of fecal bacterial communities with age and living region for the elderly living in Bama,Guangxi, China

Bama County (Guangxi, China) is famous for its longevous population. In this study, intestinal microflora of 17 healthy elderly subjects of different ages and from different regions (rural and urban) in Bama, were analyzed by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Significant effects of age and living region on the whole intestinal bacterial communities were observed by redundancy analysis (RDA). A total of 11 bacterial strains that were correlated with age and living region were identified using a t-value biplot combined with band sequencing. Four bacterial strains were correlated with both age and living region of the elderly in Bama. Two Bacteroides strains and one Ruminococcaceae strain were abundant in the rural, younger elderly; conversely, one Desulfovibrio strain was high in the urban, older elderly. Another Bacteroidetes strain was only correlated with the participant’s age, and its abundance increased with the age of the elderly. The richness of one Clostridium sordellii strain, which was only correlated with the elderly living region, was high in the urban elderly. The study also found five other novel bacterial strains that were correlated with the age or living region of the elderly in Bama. These results expand our understanding of age- and region-effects on the intestinal microflora of the elderly and raise the possibility of developing probiotics originating from centenarians.     

Synergy analysis reveals association between insulin signaling and desmoplakin expression in palmitate treated HepG2 cells

The regulation of complex cellular activities in palmitate treated HepG2 cells, and the ensuing cytotoxic phenotype, involves cooperative interactions between genes. While previous approaches have largely focused on identifying individual target genes, elucidating interacting genes has thus far remained elusive. We applied the concept of information synergy to reconstruct a "gene-cooperativity" network for palmititate-induced cytotoxicity in liver cells. Our approach integrated gene expression data with metabolic profiles to select a subset of genes for network reconstruction. Subsequent analysis of the network revealed insulin signaling as the most significantly enriched pathway, and desmoplakin (DSP) as its top neighbor. We determined that palmitate significantly reduces DSP expression, and treatment with insulin restores the lost expression of DSP. Insulin resistance is a common pathological feature of fatty liver and related ailments, whereas loss of DSP has been noted in liver carcinoma. Reduced DSP expression can lead to loss of cell-cell adhesion via desmosomes, and disrupt the keratin intermediate filament network. Our findings suggest that DSP expression may be perturbed by palmitate and, along with insulin resistance, may play a role in palmitate induced cytotoxicity, and serve as potential targets for further studies on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).     

Let It Catch: A Short‐Branched Protein for Efficiently Capturing Polysulfides in Lithium–Sulfur Batteries

Uncovering the key contributions of molecular details to capture polysulfides is important for applying suitable materials that can effectively restrain the shuttle effect in advanced lithium–sulfur batteries. This is particularly true for natural biomolecules with substantial structural and compositional diversities strongly impacting their functions. Here, natural gelatin and zein proteins are first denatured and then adopted for fabrication of nanocomposite interlayers via functionalization of carbon nanofibers. From the results of experiment and molecular dynamic simulations, it is found that the lengths of the sidechains on the two proteins play critical roles. The short‐branched gelatin shows significantly stronger adsorption of polysulfides, as compared with zein comprising many long‐chain residues. The gelatin‐based interlayer, along with its good porous structures/electrical conductivity, greatly suppresses the shuttle effect and yields exceptional electrochemical performance. Furthermore, the implementation of proteins as functional binder additives further supports the finding that gelatin enables stronger polysulfide‐trapping. As a result, high‐loading sulfur cathodes (9.4 mg cm^?2) are realized, which deliver a high average areal capacity of 8.2 mAh cm^?2 over 100 cycles at 0.1 A g^?1. This work demonstrates the importance of sidechain length in capturing polysulfides and provides a new insight in selecting and design of desired polysulfide‐binding molecules.     

黑龙江查哈阳农场石制品的剥片与修理技术

查哈阳农场位于黑龙江省齐齐哈尔市甘南县,地处松嫩平原西缘的嫩江右岸。本文以2018年在查哈阳农场太平湖管理区第八作业区东北的E2地点试掘的石制品为研究对象,从石核的剥片和石器修理的角度对石制品进行技术分析。石核、石片以及石器分析显示,E2地点存在两种剥片技术体系：一是简单剥片技术体系,该技术不存在剥片前对核体的预制过程,以片状石核、大量不规则的石片以及修理程度较低的石器为代表;二是系统剥片技术体系,该技术以剥离石叶（长石片）为最终目的,存在剥片前对核体“几何组织结构”的修型、预制现象,同时伴随台面的预制修理。E2地点的石制品技术分析,可为嫩江流域旧石器时代晚期石器工业面貌的揭示和技术变化的探讨提供新的材料与线索。     

大粒香水稻叶绿体基因组特征分析

大粒香作为贵州重要的优质稻资源,推广种植面积大,并且在乡村振兴过程中为社会带来了较高的经济效益。然而,目前对大粒香基因组学的理论研究报道较少。为揭示大粒香水稻叶绿体基因组(cpDNA)特征及系统发育关系,该研究对大粒香叶绿体进行测序,并分析其基因组特征。结果表明:(1)大粒香水稻cpDNA全长134 563 bp,包括1个大单拷贝区(LSC,80 864 bp)、1个小单拷贝区(SSC,12 347 bp)和2个反向重复序列区(IR_s,20 676 bp)。(2)注释到129个基因,可分为蛋白编码、tRNA和rRNA三类基因,数量分别为85个、36个和8个。(3)密码子偏好分析显示,大粒香cpDNA密码子偏好A碱基或U(T)碱基,亮氨酸密码子使用了1 944次,使用次数最多; 半胱氨酸的密码子仅使用198次,使用次数最少。(4)检测到129个SSR,其中有95个单核苷酸重复且大部分SSR序列由A/T碱基组成。(5)系统发育分析结果显示,大粒香与热带粳稻亲缘关系最近,聚为一类。该研究结果揭示了大粒香叶绿体基因组信息,并确定了大粒香系统发育所属分支。     

Biomaterials for High‐Energy Lithium‐Based Batteries: Strategies,Challenges, and Perspectives

Developing high‐performance batteries through applying renewable resources is of great significance for meeting ever‐growing energy demands and sustainability requirements. Biomaterials have overwhelming advantages in material abundance, environmental benignity, low cost, and more importantly, multifunctionalities from structural and compositional diversity. Therefore, significant and fruitful research on exploiting various natural biomaterials (e.g., soy protein, chitosan, cellulose, fungus, etc.) for boosting high‐energy lithium‐based batteries by means of making or modifying critical battery components (e.g., electrode, electrolyte, and separator) are reported. In this review, the recent advances and main strategies for adopting biomaterials in electrode, electrolyte, and separator engineering for high‐energy lithium‐based batteries are comprehensively summarized. The contributions of biomaterials to stabilizing electrodes, capturing electrochemical intermediates, and protecting lithium metal anodes/enhancing battery safety are specifically emphasized. Furthermore, advantages and challenges of various strategies for fabricating battery materials via biomaterials are described. Finally, future perspectives and possible solutions for further development of biomaterials for high‐energy lithium‐based batteries are proposed.     

Uncleaved ApoM Signal Peptide Is Required for Formation of Large ApoM/Sphingosine 1-Phosphate (S1P)-enriched HDL Particles

Apolipoprotein M (apoM), a plasma sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) carrier, associates with plasma HDL via its uncleaved signal peptide. Hepatocyte-specific apoM overexpression in mice stimulates formation of both larger nascent HDL in hepatocytes and larger mature apoM/S1P-enriched HDL particles in plasma by enhancing hepatic S1P synthesis and secretion. Mutagenesis of apoM glutamine 22 to alanine (apoM^Q22A) introduces a functional signal peptidase cleavage site. Expression of apoM^Q22A in ABCA1-expressing HEK293 cells resulted in the formation of smaller nascent HDL particles compared with wild type apoM (apoM^WT). When apoM^Q22A was expressed in vivo, using recombinant adenoviruses, smaller plasma HDL particles and decreased plasma S1P and apoM were observed relative to expression of apoM^WT. Hepatocytes isolated from both apoM^WT- and apoM^Q22A-expressing mice displayed an equivalent increase in cellular levels of S1P, relative to LacZ controls; however, relative to apoM^WT, apoM^Q22A hepatocytes displayed more rapid apoM and S1P secretion but minimal apoM^Q22A bound to nascent lipoproteins. Pharmacologic inhibition of ceramide synthesis increased cellular sphingosine and S1P but not medium S1P in both apoM^WT and apoM^Q22A hepatocytes. We conclude that apoM secretion is rate-limiting for hepatocyte S1P secretion and that its uncleaved signal peptide delays apoM trafficking out of the cell, promoting formation of larger nascent apoM- and S1P-enriched HDL particles that are probably precursors of larger apoM/S1P-enriched plasma HDL.     

Hepatic Apolipoprotein M (ApoM) Overexpression Stimulates Formation of Larger ApoM/Sphingosine 1-Phosphate-enriched Plasma High Density Lipoprotein

Apolipoprotein M (apoM), a lipocalin family member, preferentially associates with plasma HDL and binds plasma sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), a signaling molecule active in immune homeostasis and endothelial barrier function. ApoM overexpression in ABCA1-expressing HEK293 cells stimulated larger nascent HDL formation, compared with cells that did not express apoM; however, the in vivo role of apoM in HDL metabolism remains poorly understood. To test whether hepatic apoM overexpression increases plasma HDL size, we generated hepatocyte-specific apoM transgenic (APOM Tg) mice, which had an ∼3–5-fold increase in plasma apoM levels compared with wild-type mice. Although HDL cholesterol concentrations were similar to wild-type mice, APOM Tg mice had larger plasma HDLs enriched in apoM, cholesteryl ester, lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase, and S1P. Despite the presence of larger plasma HDLs in APOM Tg mice, in vivo macrophage reverse cholesterol transport capacity was similar to that in wild-type mice. APOM Tg mice had an ∼5-fold increase in plasma S1P, which was predominantly associated with larger plasma HDLs. Primary hepatocytes from APOM Tg mice generated larger nascent HDLs and displayed increased sphingolipid synthesis and S1P secretion. Inhibition of ceramide synthases in hepatocytes increased cellular S1P levels but not S1P secretion, suggesting that apoM is rate-limiting in the export of hepatocyte S1P. Our data indicate that hepatocyte-specific apoM overexpression generates larger nascent HDLs and larger plasma HDLs, which preferentially bind apoM and S1P, and stimulates S1P biosynthesis for secretion. The unique apoM/S1P-enriched plasma HDL may serve to deliver S1P to extrahepatic tissues for atheroprotection and may have other as yet unidentified functions.