Physical interactions facilitate sex change in the protogynous orange-spotted grouper,Epinephelus coioides

Sex change in teleost fishes is commonly regulated by social factors. In species that exhibit protogynous sex change, such as the orange-spotted grouper Epinephelus coioides, when the dominant males are removed from the social group, the most dominant female initiates sex change. The aim of this study was to determine the regulatory mechanisms of socially controlled sex change in E. coioides. We investigated the seasonal variation in social behaviours and sex change throughout the reproductive cycle of E. coioides, and defined the behaviour pattern of this fish during the establishment of a dominance hierarchy. The social behaviours and sex change in this fish were affected by season, and only occurred during the prebreeding season and breeding season. Therefore, a series of sensory isolation experiments was conducted during the breeding season to determine the role of physical, visual and olfactory cues in mediating socially controlled sex change. The results demonstrated that physical interactions between individuals in the social groups were crucial for the initiation and completion of sex change, whereas visual and olfactory cues alone were insufficient in stimulating sex change in dominant females. In addition, we propose that the steroid hormones 11-ketotestosterone and cortisol are involved in regulating the initiation of socially controlled sex change.     

Natural sex change in mature protogynous orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides): gonadal restructuring,sex hormone shifts and gene profiles

Sexual patterns of teleosts are extremely diverse and include both gonochorism and hermaphroditism. As a protogynous hermaphroditic fish, all orange-spotted groupers (Epinephelus coioides) develop directly into females, and some individuals change sex to become functional males later in life. This study investigated gonadal restructuring, shifts in sex hormone levels and gene profiles of cultured mature female groupers during the first (main) breeding season of 2019 in Huizhou, China (22° 42′ 02.6″ N, 114° 32′ 10.1″ E). Analysis of gonadal restructuring revealed that females with pre-vitellogenic ovaries underwent vitellogenesis, spawning and regression and then returned to the pre-vitellogenic stage in the late breeding season, at which point some changed sex to become males via the intersex gonad stage. A significant decrease in the level of serum 17β-estradiol (E2) was observed during ovary regression but not during sex change, whereas serum 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT) concentrations increased significantly during sex change with the highest concentration in newly developed males. Consistent with serum hormone changes, a significant decrease in cyp19a1a expression was observed during ovary regression but not during sex change, whereas the expression of cyp11c1 and hsd11b2 increased significantly during sex change. Interestingly, hsd11b2 but not cyp11c1 was significantly upregulated from the pre-vitellogenic ovary stage to the early intersex gonad stage. These results suggest that a decrease in serum E2 concentration and downregulation of cyp19a1a expression are not necessary to trigger the female-to-male transformation, whereas increased 11-KT concentration and upregulation of hsd11b2 expression may be key events for the initiation of sex change in the orange-spotted grouper.     

A Near-Infrared Perfect Absorber Assisted by Tungsten-Covered Ridges

Plasmonics - A periodic tungsten-covered dielectric ridge on substrate assembly is proposed in this article to investigate the perfect absorption in the near-infrared regime. The localized dipolar...     

氚—烟酰苯胺在钉螺体内分布示踪的研究

本文应用氚－烟酰苯胺标记湖北钉螺，示踪观察不同时间烟酰苯胺进入螺体组织和脏器内的分布和进入途径。结果显示，钉螺接触药物从２２分钟开始检测出组织、脏器内氚含量，以后逐渐增高，至１４４０分钟达最高峰；合计不同时间各组织和脏器中药物含量由高至低排列次序为外套膜、胃肠、肝脏、肠内粪梗、睾丸、卵巢、鳃、神经节、心脏；转换氚含量为烟酰苯胺剂量，证实了烟酰苯胺杀螺的低用量与高效性；由单位重量组织和脏器中药物含量排位，反映出药物在螺体分布动态变化，以及药物通过消化系统、呼吸系统、外套膜表皮三条途径进入。     

Gankyrin activates the hedgehog signalling to drive metastasis in osteosarcoma

Gankyrin is a regulatory subunit of the 26-kD proteasome complex and promotes the occurrence and progression of many malignancies. However, the role of gankyrin in osteosarcoma (OS) metastasis remains unclear. Hedgehog signalling has been shown to regulate stem cell homeostasis and cancer metastasis, but the mechanisms that activate this pathway in OS are still poorly understood. Here, a series of in vitro and in vivo assays were carried out to explore the function and mechanism of gankyrin regulating Hedgehog signalling in OS. We demonstrated that gankyrin promotes migration, invasion and regulates the expression of some stemness factors by up-regulating Gli1 in OS. Importantly, our data showed an interaction between gankyrin and Gli1. Moreover, gankyrin suppresses the ubiquitin-mediated degradation of Gli1 protein in OS. Gankyrin also significantly promotes the lung metastasis of OS in vivo. Our findings suggest that gankyrin drives metastasis and regulates the expression of some stemness factors in osteosarcoma by activating Hedgehog signalling, indicating that drug screening for compounds targeting gankyrin may contribute to the development of novel and effective therapies for OS.     

甘肃环县楼房子遗址2018年发掘简报

楼房子遗址系陇东地区一处旧石器时代中期的旷野遗址。2018年对楼房子遗址下文化层下部（第14、15层）进行了发掘,发掘面积为16 m²,出土大量石制品、动物化石。石制品原料以石英砂岩和硅质灰岩为主,类型包括石核、石片、石器、断块或断片、备料等。剥片采用硬锤锤击法,石器修理以硬锤锤击法为主。石制品类型和技术总体上属于北方小石器传统。结合地层堆积及相关的孢粉分析初步认为,楼房子遗址下文化层时代与MIS5相当。