Ghrelin Affects Gastric Cancer Progression by Activating AMPK Signaling Pathway

Biochemical Genetics - As the endogenous ligand for the GH secretagogue receptor (GHSR), Ghrelin is aberrant expressed in multiple malignant carcinoma, and involved in regulating a number of...     

大蒜气生鳞茎形态发生及其碳水化合物和内源激素含量以及相关基因表达的变化特征

以大蒜品种‘二水早’(早熟)、‘麻江红蒜’(中晚熟)和‘徐州白’(晚熟)为材料,采用石蜡切片技术结合显微观察探讨气生鳞茎形成过程中植株茎尖和花序轴形态变化,并测定了‘麻江红蒜’气生鳞茎形成过程中可溶性糖、蔗糖、淀粉和内源激素含量及相关基因表达变化,明确不同熟期各品种大蒜气生鳞茎形成进程和形态解剖学特征,以及碳水化合物和内源激素与大蒜气生鳞茎形成的关系,以探讨大蒜气生鳞茎分化的生理机制。结果表明:(1)依据茎尖生长点和花序轴的形态解剖特征,将气生鳞茎形成进程划分为启动期、气生鳞茎原基分化期(包括保护叶原基、贮藏叶原基分化)、气生鳞茎膨大期和气生鳞茎成熟期等4个时期;3个品种气生鳞茎在相同发育时期的形态解剖学特征相同,但分化时间不同,其分化顺序与大蒜品种成熟期表现一致;当总苞叶叶尖露出叶鞘,花器官原基分化时,花序轴周围分生组织区域产生小突起,标志着气生鳞茎原基分化的开始;外层保护叶由白色转为紫色时气生鳞茎进入成熟期。(2)气生鳞茎开始膨大后,其可溶性糖和蔗糖含量均显著降低,淀粉含量显著升高;ZR含量在启动期显著升高;IAA和MeJA含量在气生鳞茎原基分化期维持在较高水平,但IAA含量随着气生鳞茎膨大显著降低,并在成熟期降至最低。(3)果聚糖代谢相关基因1-SST、1-FEH分别在膨大初期、膨大中期表达量显著升高;细胞壁转移酶基因CWI相对表达量在气生鳞茎原基分化期显著升高;蔗糖信号转导基因T6P和生长素信号转导的关键转录因子ARF1相对表达量均在气生鳞茎分化期显著升高;茉莉酸信号调控途径中的负调控因子JAZ相对表达量在大蒜气生鳞茎原基分化期和膨大初期均维持一个较低水平。研究认为,大量可溶性糖及ZR在茎尖积累,可以启动气生鳞茎原基分化,促进气生鳞茎形态发生;高浓度IAA和MeJA可促进气生鳞茎原基分化;气生鳞茎膨大消耗可溶性糖,且低浓度IAA有利于气生鳞茎膨大;成熟的气生鳞茎积累大量淀粉。     

Drought stress and plant ecotype drive microbiome recruitment in switchgrass rhizosheath

The rhizosheath, a layer of soil grains that adheres firmly to roots, is beneficial for plant growth and adaptation to drought environments. Switchgrass is a perennial C4 grass which can form contact rhizosheath under drought conditions. In this study, we characterized the microbiomes of four different rhizocompartments of two switchgrass ecotypes (Alamo and Kanlow) grown under drought or well-watered conditions via 16S ribosomal RNA amplicon sequencing. These four rhizocompartments, the bulk soil, rhizosheath soil, rhizoplane, and root endosphere, harbored both distinct and overlapping microbial communities. The root compartments (rhizoplane and root endosphere) displayed low-complexity communities dominated by Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. Compared to bulk soil, Cyanobacteria and Bacteroidetes were selectively enriched, while Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were selectively depleted, in rhizosheath soil. Taxa from Proteobacteria or Firmicutes were specifically selected in Alamo or Kanlow rhizosheath soil. Following drought stress, Citrobacter and Acinetobacter were further enriched in rhizosheath soil, suggesting that rhizosheath microbiome assembly is driven by drought stress. Additionally, the ecotype-specific recruitment of rhizosheath microbiome reveals their differences in drought stress responses. Collectively, these results shed light on rhizosheath microbiome recruitment in switchgrass and lay the foundation for the improvement of drought tolerance in switchgrass by regulating the rhizosheath microbiome.     

Curvature-Dependent Cavity-Nanoparticle Scaffold-Based Clusters with LSPR Enhancement as SERS Substrates

Plasmonics - Tunable local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) enhancement properties of cavity-nanoparticle scaffold-based clusters were investigated via finite-difference time-domain (FDTD)...     

The protein kinase 2 inhibitor CX-4945 regulates osteoclast and osteoblast differentiation In vitro

Drug repositioning can identify new therapeutic applications for existing drugs, thus mitigating high R&D costs. The Protein kinase 2 (CK2) inhibitor CX-4945 regulates human cancer cell survival and angiogenesis. Here we found that CX-4945 significantly inhibited the RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation, but enhanced the BMP2-induced osteoblast differentiation in a cell culture model. CX-4945 inhibited the RANKL-induced activation of TRAP and NFATc1 expression accompanied with suppression of Akt phosphorylation, but, in contrast, it enhanced the BMP2-mediated ALP induction and MAPK ERK1/2 phosphorylation. CX-4945 is thus a novel drug candidate for bone-related disorders such as osteoporosis.     

Role of Complement 3 in TNF-α-Induced Mesenchymal Transition of Renal Tubular Epithelial Cells In Vitro

Injured renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs) have been recently thought to directly contribute to the accumulation of myofibroblasts in renal tubulointerstitial fibrosis through a process of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). However, the factors inducing RTECs to undergo EMT and the underlying mechanisms need to be further elucidated. This study aimed to determine the EMT-inducing activity of proinflammatory cytokine TNF-α and the role for complement 3 (C3) in this activity in an in vitro model of human RTECs (HK-2 cells). Wild type HK-2 cells were treated with TNF-α, IFN-γ or C3a; C3 siRNA- or control siRNA-carrying HK-2 cells were treated with TNF-α. Changes in the cell morphology and phenotype were assessed by microscopy, RT-PCR, western blotting, and immunostaining. TNF-α effectively induced HK-2 cells to express C3 and to transform into morphologically myofibroblast-like cells that lost E-cadherin (a classical epithelial cell marker) expression but acquired alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA, a classical myofibroblast differentiation marker) expression. C3 siRNA robustly attenuated all the morphologic and phenotypic changes induced by TNF-α but the control siRNA showed no effect. Our preliminary observations suggest that TNF-α may induce EMT in RTECs through inducing C3 expression.