Female‐biased migration of stream‐dwelling Dolly Varden in the Shiisorapuchi River, Hokkaido, Japan

The first evidence for female‐biased migration in a partially migratory stream‐dwelling salmonid the Dolly Varden Salvelinus malma , a phenomenon well known in sea‐run and lake‐run populations, is presented. Dolly Varden in the Shiisorapuchi River in central Hokkaido, Japan, used both tributaries, of which there are many, and the main stem, but spawned only in tributaries. The size structures of Dolly Varden (≥age 1 + years) in tributaries were unimodal (<100 mm fork length, L _F) during non‐spawning seasons but changed to bimodal during spawning seasons (lower mode <110 mm, upper mode >120 mm L _F). Mature individuals were observed in both modal groups. From the trapping and census data, the small group appeared to be tributary resident and the large group main stem migrant. Males were common in both resident and migrant components. Most females, however, migrated to the main stem to mature, indicating female‐biased migration.     

Influence of weather conditions on the flight of migrating black storks

This study tested the potential influence of meteorological parameters (temperature, humidity, wind direction, thermal convection) on different migration characteristics (namely flight speed, altitude and direction and daily distance) in 16 black storks (Ciconia nigra). The birds were tracked by satellite during their entire autumnal and spring migration, from 1998 to 2006. Our data reveal that during their 27-day-long migration between Europe and Africa (mean distance of 4100 km), the periods of maximum flight activity corresponded to periods of maximum thermal energy, underlining the importance of atmospheric thermal convection in the migratory flight of the black stork. In some cases, tailwind was recorded at the same altitude and position as the birds, and was associated with a significant rise in flight speed, but wind often produced a side azimuth along the birds'' migratory route. Whatever the season, the distance travelled daily was on average shorter in Europe than in Africa, with values of 200 and 270 km d⁻¹, respectively. The fastest instantaneous flight speeds of up to 112 km h⁻¹ were also observed above Africa. This observation confirms the hypothesis of thermal-dependant flight behaviour, and also reveals differences in flight costs between Europe and Africa. Furthermore, differences in food availability, a crucial factor for black storks during their flight between Europe and Africa, may also contribute to the above-mentioned shift in daily flight speeds.     

Exome resequencing reveals signatures of demographic and adaptive processes across the genome and range of black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa)

Extant variation in temperate and boreal plant species has been influenced by both demographic histories associated with Pleistocene glacial cycles and adaptation to local climate. We used sequence capture to investigate the role of these neutral and adaptive processes in shaping diversity in black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa). Nucleotide diversity and Tajima's D were lowest at replacement sites and highest at intergenic sites, while LD showed the opposite pattern. With samples grouped into three populations arrayed latitudinally, effective population size was highest in the north, followed by south and centre, and LD was highest in the south followed by the north and centre, suggesting a possible northern glacial refuge. F_ST outlier analysis revealed that promoter, 5′‐UTR and intronic sites were enriched for outliers compared with coding regions, while no outliers were found among intergenic sites. Codon usage bias was evident, and genes with synonymous outliers had 30% higher average expression compared with genes containing replacement outliers. These results suggest divergent selection related to regulation of gene expression is important to local adaptation in P. trichocarpa. Finally, within‐population selective sweeps were much more pronounced in the central population than in putative northern and southern refugia, which may reflect the different demographic histories of the populations and concomitant effects on signatures of genetic hitchhiking from standing variation.     

MicroRNA‐29b‐3p suppresses oral squamous cell carcinoma cell migration and invasion via IL32/AKT signalling pathway

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is aggressive accompanied with poor prognosis. We previously isolated the most invasive cells resembling the invasive tumour front by microfluidic technology and explored their differentially expressed microRNAs (miRNAs) in our previous work. Here, we verified the miR‐29b‐3p as a guarder that suppressed migration and invasion of OSCC cells and was down‐regulated in the most invasive cells. Besides that, the invasion suppression role of miR‐29b‐3p was achieved through the IL32/AKT pathway. Thus, miR‐29b‐3p and IL32 might serve as therapeutic targets for blocking the progression and improving the outcome of OSCC.     

TLR4在气道上皮细胞诱导的哮喘气道平滑肌细胞迁移中的作用

目的:探讨Toll样受体4(TLR4)的激活在气道上皮细胞诱导的哮喘气道平滑肌细胞(ASMCs)迁移中的作用。方法:细胞消化法培养原代哮喘ASMCs,TNF-α刺激上皮细胞系RTE细胞收集细胞培养上清液,检测上清液中IL-8和RANTES的含量,改良Boyden趋化小室检测哮喘ASMCs的跨膜迁移,以TLR4抗体作为工具药,观察其在上皮细胞诱导的哮喘ASMCs跨膜迁移中的作用。结果:各TNF-α组培养上清液中IL-8和RANTES水平均显著增高,20 ng/ml组较其他组显著增高(P<0.01)。各组哮喘ASMCs跨膜迁移较正常组均增加(P<0.01);哮喘组和TNF-α+TLR4抗体组哮喘ASMCs跨膜迁移数较TNF-α组显著减少(P<0.01)。TLR4抗体组哮喘ASMCs跨膜迁移数较哮喘组增加(P<0.05)。结论:气道上皮细胞可能通过分泌细胞因子激活哮喘ASMCs表面的TLR4,诱导增强ASMCs的跨膜迁移,在哮喘的气道重构中发挥一定的作用。     

PHLDA1 (pleckstrin homology-like domain,family A,member 1) knockdown promotes migration and invasion of MCF10A breast epithelial cells

PHLDA1 (pleckstrin homology-like domain, family A, member 1) is a multifunctional protein that plays distinct roles in several biological processes including cell death and therefore its altered expression has been identified in different types of cancer. Progressively loss of PHLDA1 was found in primary and metastatic melanoma while its overexpression was reported in intestinal and pancreatic tumors. Previous work from our group showed that negative expression of PHLDA1 protein was a strong predictor of poor prognosis for breast cancer disease. However, the function of PHLDA1 in mammary epithelial cells and the tumorigenic process of the breast is unclear. To dissect PHLDA1 role in human breast epithelial cells, we generated a clone of MCF10A cells with stable knockdown of PHLDA1 and performed functional studies. To achieve reduced PHLDA1 expression we used shRNA plasmid transfection and then changes in cell morphology and biological behavior were assessed. We found that PHLDA1 downregulation induced marked morphological alterations in MCF10A cells, such as changes in cell-to-cell adhesion pattern and cytoskeleton reorganization. Regarding cell behavior, MCF10A cells with reduced expression of PHLDA1 showed higher proliferative rate and migration ability in comparison with control cells. We also found that MCF10A cells with PHLDA1 knockdown acquired invasive properties, as evaluated by transwell Matrigel invasion assay and showed enhanced colony-forming ability and irregular growth in low attachment condition. Altogether, our results indicate that PHLDA1 downregulation in MCF10A cells leads to morphological changes and a more aggressive behavior.     

Heterogeneic modulation of malignant behavior in human glioma cells in defined and serum-containing media

Summary Malignant features in three glioma cell lines were studied in four defined media of various complexity. The cell lines D37MG, D54MG, and GaMG were able to grow in monolayer culture in all media examined, and as multicellular tumor spheroids in the two most nutrient-rich media. In the defined media, none of the cell lines were able to migrate in a migration assay on poly-D-lysine-coated plastic surfaces. Flow cytometric analysis of the GaMG cell line demonstrated no medium-dependent selection of subclones of glioma cells in spheroids cultured for 30 d. Morphological diversity of spheroids varied according to the supplementation of the media. The capacity of glioma cells to invade cellular rat brain aggregates was intact in the media examined. However, glioma migration was severely inhibited by the lack of specific serum components. This study demonstrates that glioma growth and invasion was heterogenously preserved in the defined media used. Depending on the assay to be used in the study of glioma cell behavior, the degree of medium supplementation has to be considered.     

Knockdown of RPL34 inhibits the proliferation and migration of glioma cells through the inactivation of JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway

Ribosomal protein L34 (RPL34), belonging to the L34E family of ribosomal proteins, was reported to be dysregulated in several types of cancers and plays important roles in tumor progression. However, the expression and roles of RPL34 in human glioma remain largely unknown. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the expression and role of RPL34 in glioma. We report here that RPL34 is highly expressed in human glioma tissues and cell lines. Knockdown of RPL34 markedly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion, as well as prevented the epithelial-mesenchymal transition phenotype in glioma cells. Further, mechanistic analysis showed that knockdown of RPL34 significantly downregulated the levels of p-JAK and p-STAT3 in glioma cells. Taken together, our findings indicated that knockdown of RPL34 inhibits the proliferation and migration of glioma cells through the inactivation of JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway. Thus, RPL34 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of glioma.     

RORα高表达对二烯丙基二硫抑制人胃癌细胞增殖与迁移侵袭的影响

目的观察高表达RORα对二烯丙基二硫(DADS)抑制人胃癌MGC803细胞增殖、迁移与侵袭的影响。方法集落形成实验与流式细胞术检测细胞增殖与细胞周期;细胞划痕和Transwell实验分别检测细胞迁移与侵袭。RT-PCR与Western blot分别检测RORα、MMP-9和TIMP3 mRNA与蛋白表达水平。结果RT-PCR与Western blot检测显示,RORα高表达与DADS处理较对照组与空载体组RORαmRNA与蛋白表达明显上调,DADS+RORα高表达组上调更为显著(P<0.05)。与对照组和空载体组比较,RORα高表达与DADS处理组MMP-9表达下调,TIMP3表达上调,DADS+RORα高表达组改变最为显著。集落形成实验显示,RORα高表达与DADS处理组较对照组与空载体组的集落形成率明显降低。流式细胞术显示,与对照组和空载体组比较,RORα高表达与DADS处理组G2/M期细胞比率明显升高。细胞划痕和Transwell实验显示,RORα高表达与DADS处理组细胞迁移与侵袭能力明显降低。结论RORα高表达可通过上调TIMP3与下调MMP-9促进DADS阻滞MGC803细胞G2/M期和抑制增殖与迁移侵袭。