Advantages of robot-assisted resection of large mediastinal tumors: a single-center preliminary study.

Current study aims to assess the safety and efficacy of robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (RATS) for sizable mediastinal masses with a minimum diameter ≥6 cm, compared with video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) and open surgery. This study enrolled 130 patients with mediastinal tumors with no less than 6 cm diameter in Zhongnan Hospital, Wuhan University, including 33 patients who underwent RATS, 52 patients who underwent VATS and 45 patients who underwent open surgery. After classifying based on mass size and whether it has invaded or not, we compared their clinical characteristics and perioperative outcomes. There was no significant difference in age, gender, mass size, myasthenia gravis, mass location, pathological types (p > 0.05) in three groups. Patients undergoing open surgery typically presenting at a more advanced stage (p < 0.05). No obvious difference was discovered in the average postoperative length of stay, operation duration, chest tube duration and average postoperative day 1 drainage output between RATS group and VATS group (p > 0.05), while intraoperative blood loss in RATS group was significantly lower than VATS group (p = 0.046). Moreover, the postoperative length of stay, operation duration, chest tube duration and intraoperative blood loss in RATS group were significantly lower than open surgery group (p < 0.001). RATS is a secure and efficient approach for removing large mediastinal masses at early postoperative period. In comparison with VATS, RATS is associated with lower intraoperative blood loss. Compared with open surgery, RATS is also associated with shorter postoperative length of stay, operation duration, chest tube duration and intraoperative blood loss.

Low-concentration repeated exposure and high-concentration single exposure of cyanamide suppressed the growth of redroot pigweed in the alfalfa field.

The inclination toward natural products has led to the onset of the discovery of new bioactive metabolites that could be targeted for specific therapeutic or agronomic applications. Despite increasing knowledge coming to light of plant-derived materials as leads for new herbicides, relatively little is known about the mode of action on herbicide-resistant weeds. Cyanamide (CA) is a naturally occurring herbicide synthesized by hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth.). However, it has not been experimentally verified whether CA suppresses target plants via sustained discharge at low concentrations, as is often the case with most plant-derived materials. This study aimed to detect the toxicity and the mode of action of CA to alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) and redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.). The toxicity of CA toward the alfalfa and redroot pigweed by three different exposure patterns was compared: low-concentration repeated exposure with 0.3 g/L CA (LRE), high-concentration single exposure with 1.2 g/L CA (HSE), and distilled water spray as control. The results showed that CA had a stronger inhibitory effect on redroot pigweed growth compared to alfalfa under both LRE and HSE exposure modes, with leaves gradually turning yellow and finally wilting. Beyond that, field trials were conducted to corroborate the toxicity of CA to alfalfa and redroot pigweed. The results have also shown that CA could inhibit the growth of redroot pigweed without significant adverse effects on alfalfa. The outcomes concerning electrolyte permeability, root activity, and malondialdehyde (MDA) content indicated that CA suppressed the growth of redroot pigweed by interfering with the structure of the cell membrane and impacting cellular osmotic potential. CA could destroy the cell membrane structure to inhibit the growth of the redroot pigweed by both LRE and HSE exposure modes, which provides a theoretical basis for preventing and controlling redroot pigweed in alfalfa fields.

Sources and transport of CO2 in the karst system of Jiguan Cave, Funiu Mountains, China.

Conveyance and modification of carbon-isotope signals within the karst system remain difficult to constrain, due to the complexity of interactions between multiple components, including precipitation, bedrock, soil, atmosphere, and biota. Cave monitoring is thus critical to understanding both their transport in the karst system and dependence on local hydroclimatic conditions. Jiguan Cave, located in Funiu Mountain in central China, is representative of karst tourist caves with relatively thin epikarst zone. We conducted a comprehensive monitoring program of cave climate from 2018 to 2021 and measured δ13C during 2021 in monthly and heavy-rainfall samples of soil CO2, cave CO2, cave water (drip water and underground river), and underground river outlet. Our results demonstrate synchronous variations between CO2 concentration and δ13CCO2 in both soil and cave air on seasonal time scales. Cave pCO2 and carbon-isotope composition further exhibited a high sensitivity to human respiration with fluctuations of ~2000-3000 ppm within 4 days during the cave closure period in July 2021 without tourists. 13C-depleted isotopic signal of cave air in summer is the mixture of human respiration and soil CO2 which varies as a function of regional hydrological conditions of the summer monsoon during the rainy season with high temperatures and humidity. However, respired CO2 from the overlying soil was expected to be the only principal source of the cave CO2 when the anthropogenic CO2 source was removed. The high seasonal amplitude of cave air δ13CCO2 reflects ventilation dynamics, which leads to a prominent contribution from the external atmosphere during winter. Intriguingly, although the δ13C signal reflects complex vertical processes in the vertical karst profile, a heavy summer rainfall event was related to anomalously high δ13C values of cave water that can be utilized to interpret rainfall intensity and regional hydroclimate.

Neoadjuvant Lorlatinib Induces Pathological Complete Response in Advanced ALK-Positive Lung Cancer: A Case Report.

BACKGROUND Chemotherapy has been the conventional treatment method for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Nevertheless, the identification and comprehension of oncogenic driver alterations have paved the way for targeted therapies, significantly enhancing patient outcomes. The management of locally advanced NSCLC that is positive for ALK presents a challenge due to the lack of reported randomized controlled trials. The efficacy of neoadjuvant and adjuvant targeted therapy in this context remains uncertain. CASE REPORT A 54-year-old man was diagnosed with stage IIIB (pT1N3M0) upper right lung adenocarcinoma carrying the EML4-ALK fusion gene. Clinically, the patient had multiple enlarged lymph nodes in the right hilum and mediastinum, with the largest measuring approximately 28×19 mm by CT scan and we found that the L4 lymph node was invaded by metastasis. Then, the patient received 1 cycle of chemotherapy with paclitaxel in combination with nedaplatin and subsequently received maintenance treatment involving lorlatinib. Two months later, clinical evaluations revealed progressive reduction of the lesions, especially the reduced size of the mediastinal lymph nodes. Therefore, the patient underwent thoracoscopic partial lobectomy and lymphadenectomy and achieved pathological complete response (pCR). After 3 months, a follow-up CT scan was similar to the first postoperative CT scan and no tumor was found. CONCLUSIONS This case demonstrates the potential advantage of lorlatinib as a neoadjuvant therapy in advanced ALK-positive NSCLC. It emphasizes the importance of identifying new therapeutic targets by next-generation sequencing (NGS) and implementing precise treatment strategies in clinical practice.

Origin and Enrichment Mechanisms of Salinity and Fluoride in Sedimentary Aquifers of Datong Basin, Northern China.

The exposure of inhabitants to high fluoride and saline groundwater is the main health issue in Datong Basin, Northern China. This study aims to elucidate the spatial distribution and the mechanisms of high fluoride and salinity occurrence in the shallow sedimentary aquifers of the Datong Basin. Groundwater salinity and fluoride content, and their association with measured hydrochemical parameters, were conducted using multivariate statistical analyses. The analytical results revealed that the concentrations of fluoride and total dissolved solids (TDS) show dramatic variations within the study area. Around 41.4% of groundwater samples contained high-level fluoride concentration (F- > 1.5 mg/L), whereas 32.8% contained elevated-level TDS (TDS > 1000 mg/L). Both fluoride and TDS concentrations had elevated trends towards the central part of the basin. Shallow groundwater was seriously affected by evaporation and evapotranspiration, which can be the critical factors responsible for rather high TDS and F- concentrations in shallow aquifers. Water-rock reactions including silicate hydrolysis, dissolution-precipitation of carbonates and evaporates, adsorption, and ion exchange processes, as well as evapotranspiration, are the main governing factors for salinity and fluoride enrichment in groundwater. Solubility control of F-bearing and carbonate minerals is the dominant mechanism affecting F- levels. Prevailing conditions of alkaline pH, moderate TDS and Na+, high HCO3-, and lower Ca2+ content facilitate the enrichment of fluoride in the study area. Excessive evapotranspiration can be also the most influencing factor responsible for high fluoride and TDS content, due to the extended residence time of groundwater and the arid climate of the central part of the Datong Basin.

Allelopathic Toxicity of Cyanamide Could Control Amaranth (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) in Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) Field.

The inclination toward natural products has led to the onset of the discovery of new bioactive metabolites that could be targeted for specific therapeutic or agronomic applications. Despite increasing knowledge coming to light of allelochemicals as leads for new herbicides, relatively little is known about the mode of action of allelochemical-based herbicides on herbicide-resistant weeds. Cyanamide is an allelochemical produced by hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth.). This study aimed to detect the toxicity of cyanamide to alfalfa and amaranth. Seed germination experiments were carried out by the filter paper culture, and the seedling growth inhibition experiment was carried out by spraying alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) and amaranth (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) seedlings with cyanamide. The results showed that when the concentration of cyanamide was 0.1 g·L-1, the germination of amaranth seeds could be completely inhibited without affecting the germination of alfalfa seeds. At the concentration of 0.5 g·L-1, cyanamide could significantly inhibit the growth of the root and stem of amaranth seedlings but did not affect the growth of alfalfa. This effect was associated with the induction of oxidative stress. The ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and catalase (CAT) activity of amaranth decreased by 6.828 U/g FW and 290.784 U/g FW, respectively. The malondialdehyde (MDA) content, peroxidase (POD), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity of amaranth firstly increased and then decreased with the increasing concentration of CA. These enzyme activities of amaranth changed more than that of alfalfa. Activities of the antioxidant enzymes APX, CAT, POD, and SOD and the content of MDA varied dramatically, thereby demonstrating the great influence of reactive oxygen species upon identified allelochemical exposure. In addition, cyanamide can also inhibit the production of chlorophyll, thereby affecting the growth of plants. From the above experiments, we know that cyanamide can inhibit the growth of amaranth in alfalfa fields. Thus, the changes caused by cyanamide described herein can contribute to a better understanding of the actions of allelochemical and the potential use of cyanamide in the production of bioherbicides.

MicroRNA-1224-5p Aggravates Sepsis-Related Acute Lung Injury in Mice.

Oxidative stress and inflammation are implicated in the development of sepsis-related acute lung injury (ALI). MicroRNA-1224-5p (miR-1224-5p) plays critical roles in regulating inflammatory response and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. The present study is aimed at investigating the role and underlying mechanisms of miR-1224-5p in sepsis-related ALI. Mice were intratracheally injected with lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 5 mg/kg) for 12 h to induce sepsis-related ALI. To manipulate miR-1224-5p level, mice were intravenously injected with the agomir, antagomir, or matched controls for 3 consecutive days. Murine peritoneal macrophages were stimulated with LPS (100 ng/mL) for 6 h to further validate the role of miR-1224-5p in vitro. To inhibit adenosine 5'-monophosphate-activated protein kinase alpha (AMPKα) or peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-γ), compound C or GW9662 was used in vivo and in vitro. We found that miR-1224-5p levels in lungs were elevated by LPS injection, and that the miR-1224-5p antagomir significantly alleviated LPS-induced inflammation, oxidative stress, and ALI in mice. Conversely, the miR-1224-5p agomir aggravated inflammatory response, ROS generation, and pulmonary dysfunction in LPS-treated mice. In addition, the miR-1224-5p antagomir reduced, while the miR-1224-5p agomir aggravated LPS-induced inflammation and oxidative stress in murine peritoneal macrophages. Further findings revealed that miR-1224-5p is directly bound to the 3'-untranslated regions of PPAR-γ and subsequently suppressed PPAR-γ/AMPKα axis, thereby aggravating LPS-induced ALI in vivo and in vitro. We demonstrate for the first time that endogenous miR-1224-5p is a critical pathogenic factor for inflammation and oxidative damage during LPS-induced ALI through inactivating PPAR-γ/AMPKα axis. Targeting miR-1224-5p may help to develop novel approaches to treat sepsis-related ALI.

Genetic diversity and population structure analysis in a large collection of Vicia amoena in China with newly developed SSR markers.

Vicia amoena is a high-nutritional quality forage similar to alfalfa. However, studies on the genetic background of V. amoena are scarce. In the present study, the genetic variation of 24 V. amoena populations was assessed with newly developed simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. A total of 8799 SSRs were identified in the V. amoena genomic-enriched sequences, and the most abundant repeat number was four. A total of 569 sampled individuals were assayed to evaluate the genetic diversity of the V. amoena populations based on 21 polymorphic SSR primers. The polymorphism information content (PIC) ranged from 0.896 to 0.968, with an average of 0.931, which indicated that the markers were highly informative. Based on analysis of molecular variance, 88% of the variance occurred within populations, and the remaining 12% of the variance occurred among populations. The high degree of gene flow (Nm= 4.958) also showed slight differentiation among the V. amoena populations. The V. amoena populations were mainly clustered by steppe and mountain habitats based on principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) and STRUCTURE analysis. This indicated that the elevation and special habitat of geographical origins may be important factors affecting the clustered pattern of V. amoena populations. Neighbour-joining (NJ) analysis did not separate the populations well by geographical origin, which indicated that the genetic structure of V. amoena was complex and needs further study. Overall, our results showed that the newly developed SSR markers could benefit the V. amoena research community by providing genetic background information to help establish a foundation for breeding improvement and germplasm resource conservation.

MicroRNA-23a-5p Is Involved in the Regulation of Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Lung Injury by Targeting HSP20/ASK1.

Inflammation and oxidative stress contribute to the progression of acute lung injury (ALI). MicroRNA-23a-5p (miR-23a-5p) has been reported to regulate inflammation and oxidative stress; however, its role in ALI is still poorly elucidated. Mice were intravenously treated with the miR-23a-5p antagomir, agomir, or the negative controls for 3 consecutive days and then received a single intratracheal injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 5 mg/kg) to induce ALI. Pulmonary function, bronchoalveolar lavage fluids (BALFs), arterial blood gas, and molecular biomarkers associated with inflammation and oxidative stress were analyzed. In addition, murine peritoneal macrophages were isolated and treated with LPS to verify the role of miR-23a-5p in vitro. We detected an elevation of miR-23a-5p expression in the lungs from ALI mice. The miR-23a-5p antagomir was prevented, whereas the miR-23a-5p agomir aggravated inflammation, oxidative stress, lung tissue injury, and pulmonary dysfunction in LPS-treated mice. Besides, the miR-23a-5p antagomir also reduced the productions of proinflammatory cytokines and free radicals in LPS-treated primary macrophages, which were further augmented in cells following the miR-23a-5p agomir treatment. Additional findings demonstrated that the miR-23a-5p agomir exacerbated LPS-induced ALI via activating apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 (ASK1), and that pharmacological or genetic inhibition of ASK1 significantly repressed the deleterious effects of the miR-23a-5p agomir. Moreover, we proved that the miR-23a-5p agomir activated ASK1 via directly reducing heat shock protein 20 (HSP20) expression. miR-23a-5p is involved in the regulation of LPS-induced inflammation, oxidative stress, lung tissue injury, and pulmonary dysfunction by targeting HSP20/ASK1, and it is a valuable therapeutic candidate for the treatment of ALI.

Phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C gene involved in heat and drought tolerance in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).

BACKGROUND: Phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C proteins mediate environmental stress responses in many plants. However, the potential of PI-PLC genes involved with abiotic stress tolerance in wheat remains un-explored. OBJECTIVE: To study TaPLC1 genetic relation with wheat drought and heat resistance. METHODS: The seedlings were treated with PI-PLC inhibitor U73122 at the single leaf stage. The seedlings were treated with drought and heat stress at the two leaf stage, and some physiological indexes and the expression profile of TaPLC1 gene were determined. And the TaPLC1 overexpression vector was transferred to Arabidopsis and selected to T3 generation for drought and heat stress treatment. RESULTS: After 4 h of drought and heat stress, the SOD activity, MDA and soluble sugar content of the two cultivars with inhibitor were higher than those without inhibitor, the chlorophyll content decreased. CS seedlings showed significant wilting phenomenon, and TAM107 showed slight wilting. After the elimination of drought and heat stress, all seedling wilting gradually recovered, while the leaf tips of the two varieties treated with inhibitors began to wilt and turn yellow, which was more significant 5 days after the drought and heat stress, while the degree of spring wilting and yellow in CS was earlier than that in TAM107. The expression patterns of TaPLC1 gene were different in the two cultivars, but the expression levels reached the maximum at 30 min of heat stress. The change of TaPLC1 expression in TAM107 without inhibitor treatment was significantly greater than that in CS. The expression level of TaPLC1 in the two cultivars under stress was significantly different between the two cultivars treated with inhibitor and untreated, and was lower than that of the normal plants under normal conditions. These results indicated that inhibition of TaPLC1 gene expression could enhance the sensitivity of seedlings to stress. In Arabidopsis, the root lengths of transgenic and wild-type seedlings were shortened after drought stress treatment, but the root lengths of transgenic plants decreased slightly. And the expression of TaPLC1 gene was significantly increased after drought and heat stress. This indicated that overexpression of TaPLC1 improved drought resistance of Arabidopsis. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that TaPLC1 may be involved in the regulation mechanism of drought and heat stress in wheat.

Proteomics Reveals the Changes that Contribute to Fusarium Head Blight Resistance in Wheat.

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a devastating disease of wheat, causing yield losses and quality reduction as a result of mycotoxin production. In this study, iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification)-labeling-based mass spectrometry was employed to characterize the proteome in wheat cultivars Xinong 538 and Zhoumai 18 with contrasting levels of FHB resistance as a means to elucidate the molecular mechanisms contributing to FHB resistance. A total of 13,669 proteins were identified in the two cultivars 48 h after Fusarium graminearum inoculation. Among these, 2,505 unique proteins exclusively accumulated in Xinong 538 (resistant) and 887 proteins in Zhoumai 18 (susceptible). Gene Ontology enrichment analysis showed that most differentially accumulated proteins (DAPs) from both cultivars were assigned to the following categories: metabolic process, single-organism process, cellular process, and response to stimulus. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis showed that a greater number of proteins belonging to different metabolic pathways were identified in Xinong 538 compared with Zhoumai 18. Specifically, DAPs from the FHB-resistant cultivar Xinong 538 populated categories of metabolic pathways related to plant-pathogen interaction. These DAPs might play a critical role in defense responses exhibited by Xinong 538. DAPs from both genotypes were assigned to all wheat chromosomes except chromosome 6B, with approximately 30% mapping to wheat chromosomes 2B, 3B, 5B, and 5D. Twenty single nucleotide polymorphism markers, flanking DAPs on chromosomes 1B, 3B, 5B, and 6A, overlapped with the location of earlier mapped FHB-resistance quantitative trait loci. The data provide evidence for the involvement of several DAPs in the early stages of the FHB-resistance response in wheat; however, further functional characterization of candidate proteins is warranted.

Prognostic and diagnostic significance of Cavin 2 in lung adenocarcinoma.

INTRODUCTION: Cavin 2 down-regulation is reported in several malignant tumors and is associated with tumor progression. However, the role of Cavin 2 in lung adenocarcinoma is unknown. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic and diagnostic significance of Cavin 2 in lung adenocarcinoma. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Cavin 2 expression levels were examined in 150 cases of lung adenocarcinoma and matched adjacent normal lung tissues using RNA extraction and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), Western blotting and immunohistochemistry (IHC) assays. Then, the relationship of Cavin 2 expression with clinicopathological characteristics and patients' survival was further evaluated in lung adenocarcinoma. RESULTS: QPCR and Western blotting analysis indicated that Cavin 2 expression levels were significantly lower in lung adenocarcinoma tissues compared with those in adjacent normal lung tissues (p < 0.0001). The IHC results showed that positive expression of Cavin 2 was mainly located in cytoplasm as brown, but was hard to detect in lung adenocarcinoma tissues. The low-expression rates of Cavin 2 in lung adenocarcinoma and adjacent normal lung tissues were 62.0% and 20.0%, respectively, and the difference was significant (p < 0.0001). Lower expression of Cavin 2 was significantly associated with tumor size, TNM stage and lymph node metastasis (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Cavin 2 has low expression in lung adenocarcinoma, which might be regarded as a potential prognostic and diagnostic biomarker.

Expression and evolution of the phospholipase C gene family in Brachypodium distachyon.

BACKGROUND: Phospholipase C (PLC) is an enzyme that hydrolyzes phospholipids and plays an important role in plant growth and development. The Brachypodium distachyon is a model plant of Gramineae, but the research on PLC gene family of Brachypodium has not been reported. OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to identify the PLC family gene in Brachypodium and to determine the expression profiles of PLCs under the abiotic stress. METHODS: Complete genome sequences and transcriptomes of Brachypodium were downloaded from the PLAZA. The hidden Markov model-based profile of the conserved PLC domain was submitted as a query to identify all potential PLC domain sequences with HMMER software. Expression profiles of BdPLCs were obtained based on the qRT-PCR analysis. RESULTS: There were 8 PLC genes in Brachypodium (BdPI-PLCs 1-4 and BdNPCs 1-4). All members of BdPI-PLC had three conserved domains of X, Y, and C2, and no EF-hand was found. All BdNPCs contained a phosphatase domain. BdPI-PLC genes were distributed on Chr1, Chr2 and Chr4, with different types and numbers of cis-regulatory elements in their respective gene promoters. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the genetic relationship between Brachypodium and rice was closer than Arabidopsis. The expression patterns of BdPI-PLC gene under abiotic stresses (drought, low temperature, high temperature and salt stress) were up-regulated, indicated their important roles in response to low temperature, high temperature, drought and salt stresses. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides comprehensive information for the study of Brachypodium PLC gene family and lays a foundation for further research on the molecular mechanism of Brachypodium stress adaptation.

Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Profile Analysis of the Phospholipase C Gene Family in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).

Phospholipid-hydrolyzing enzymes include members of the phospholipase C (PLC) family that play important roles in regulating plant growth and responding to stress. In the present study, a systematic in silico analysis of the wheat PLC gene family revealed a total of 26 wheat PLC genes (TaPLCs). Phylogenetic and sequence alignment analyses divided the wheat PLC genes into 2 subfamilies, TaPI-PLC (containing the typical X, Y, and C2 domains) and TaNPC (containing a phosphatase domain). TaPLC expression patterns differed among tissues, organs, and under abiotic stress conditions. The transcript levels of 8 TaPLC genes were validated through qPCR analyses. Most of the TaPLC genes were sensitive to salt stress and were up-regulated rapidly, and some were sensitive to low temperatures and drought. Overexpression of TaPI-PLC1-2B significantly improved resistance to salt and drought stress in Arabidopsis, and the primary root of P1-OE was significantly longer than that of the wild type under stress conditions. Our results not only provide comprehensive information for understanding the PLC gene family in wheat, but can also provide a solid foundation for functional characterization of the wheat PLC gene family.

LBL deposition of chitosan/heparin bilayers for improving biological ability and reducing infection of nanofibers.

The complexity of cardiovascular disease requires that the materials for preparing vascular grafts possess good biocompatibility, high mechanical property, and even some excellent additional properties. In this study, polycaprolactone (PCL) with good mechanical property and natural source silk fibroin (SF) were electrospun into PCL/SF nanofibers to obtain the nanofibrous substrate. With the addition of SF, the mechanical property of PCL/SF nanofibrous mats was maintained to a certain extent. While, the hydrophilicity of PCL/SF nanofibrous mats was greatly improved which is more suitable for immersive layer-by-layer assembly (LBL). The oppositely charged heparin (Hep) and chitosan (CS) were alternatively deposited on the surface of PCL/SF nanofibers via LBL. After implanting human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) on the LBL-structured nanofibrous mats for 48 h, it was confirmed that the CS/Hep bilayers enhanced the biocompatibility of the nanofibers. Furthermore, the results of the antibacterial test showed that the antibacterial effects of the LBL-structured nanofibrous mats for Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were both achieved 95% when the number of Hep/CS bilayer was 10. It can be demonstrated that the LBL-structured nanofibrous mats with improved biocompatibility and reduced infectivity had been prepared successfully, and can be potentially used in vascular grafts.

Intra-population genetic diversity of Buchloe dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm (buffalograss) determined using morphological traits and sequence-related amplified polymorphism markers.

Genetic variation and diversity are prerequisites for improvement of buffalograss breeding. To assess the within-population genetic diversity of buffalograss, seven morphological traits were evaluated to confirm the variations at the morphological level. The principal component analysis revealed that leaf length, leaf width and stolon branches had a significant contribution to the total variation. The first three principle components showed 72.55% variation. The DNA analysis performed using SRAP primers was used for deducing the diversity at the DNA level. A total of 125 bands were obtained with 8 selected SRAP primer pairs, of which 119 (95.2%) were polymorphic. The polymorphic information content ranged from 0.94 to 0.97 with a mean of 0.96; the marker index ranged from 10.34 to 18.43 with an average value of 14.28. The individuals were successfully assigned to two major groups according to sex in the PCoA and UPGMA dendrogram based on SRAP data, while the individuals could not be grouped based on morphological traits, and the two markers were not significantly correlated (r = 0.0753, P = 0.8489 > 0.05). The molecular data revealed that sex is a critical factor and that female and monoecious plants could be chosen as parents to breed new varieties.

TSPAN7 promotes the migration and proliferation of lung cancer cells via epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition.

PURPOSE: To explore the effects and mechanisms of tetraspanin TSPAN7 on the progression of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All 125 lung cancer specimens and 60 metastatic tissues were obtained from patients diagnosed with NSCLC, and we used immunohistochemistry to detect the expression of TSPAN7 in NSCLC tissues and adjacent normal tissues. Cell proliferation and invasion ability were determined by MTT, colony formation, and cell migration. The relative protein expression level was analyzed by Western blot analysis. RESULTS: Our clinical data showed that among 125 patients with lung cancer, TSPAN7 was associated with lymph node status, differentiation, tumor size, and poor prognosis. TSPAN7 knockout inhibited cell proliferation and migration. In addition, TSPAN7 increased the expression of N-cadherin in NSCLC cells by reducing the expression of E-cadherin and vimentin and promoting the cell epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process. Xenograft transplantation model confirmed the role of TSPAN7 in NSCLC metastasis. CONCLUSION: TSPAN7-mediated EMT is the key to NSCLC migration. TSPAN7 is a potential target for NSCLC therapy.

Neuregulin1 acts as a suppressor in human lung adenocarcinoma via AKT and ERK1/2 pathway.

BACKGROUND: Neuregulin1 (NRG1) is critical signaling protein that mediates the activation of downstream signaling pathways associated with malignancies. Multiple gene fusions related to NRG1 have been found in lung cancer. However, the underlying role NRG1 in lung cancer is yet unclear. Therefore, the present study investigated the biological functions on human lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). METHODS: The expression of NRG1 was detected in LUAD tissues by Western blot (WB), quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry (IHC). The expression of NRG1 was upregulated by the addition of exogenous NRG1 and downregulated by small interfering RNA (siRNA), and the biological behaviors of LUAD cells were assessed: cell proliferation by MTT assay, cell cycle and apoptosis by flow cytometry analysis, and migration and invasion using Transwell system. Finally, the pathway underlying the cellular function was analyzed by WB. RESULTS: A lower expression of NRG1 was observed in LUAD cancer tissues (P<0.05). Moreover, the addition of exogenous NRG1 reduced the cell proliferation, migration, and invasion (P<0.001), while the downregulation of endogenous NRG1 promoted the three kinds of biological behaviors of LUAD cell lines (P<0.001); however, these manifestations did no effect on the distribution of cell cycle and apoptosis status (P>0.05). Furthermore, the deficiency of NRG1 reduced the expression of p-ERK1/2 and p-AKT at the protein level (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The current results suggested that NRG1 might be a suppressor in the development of LUAD, and its function was related to AKT and ERK1/2 pathway.