Advances in methane emissions from agricultural sources: Part I. Accounting and mitigation.

Methane is one of the major greenhouse gases (GHGs) and agriculture is recognized as its primary emitter. Methane accounting is a prerequisite for developing effective agriculture mitigation strategies. In this review, methane accounting methods and research status for various agricultural emission source including rice fields, animal enteric fermentation and livestock and poultry manure management were overview, and the influencing factors of each emission source were analyzed and discussed. At the same time, it analyzes the different research efforts involving agricultural methane accounting and makes recommendations based on the actual situation. Finally, mitigation strategies based on accounting results and actual situation are proposed. This review aims to provide basic data and reference for agriculture-oriented countries and regions to actively participate in climate action and carry out effective methane emission mitigation.

Development, Reliability and Validity of the Medication Literacy Scale for Parents of Children with Epilepsy.

Purpose: This study aimed to develop a medication literacy scale for parents of children with epilepsy (MLSPCE) and to test the reliability and validity of the scale. Patients and Methods: The pilot scale was formulated based on the concept of medication literacy, the knowledge-attitude-practice model, and relevant literature reviews. It was formed through two rounds of expert consultations using the Delphi method. A survey of 657 parents of children with epilepsy, who were admitted to the neurology department or examined in the neuro-electrophysiological outpatient department of Guangzhou Women and Children Medical Center, using the pilot scale was conducted from October 2021 to January 2022 to test the reliability and validity of the scale questionnaire. The content validity of the scale questionnaire was assessed by consulting 20 neurology nursing, neurology clinician, and nursing education experts. Numbers, percentages, t-test, correlation analysis, Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient and factor analysis were used for data analysis. Results: The MLSPCE included 34 items in four dimensions. Ten factors were drawn from the explorative factor analysis, with a cumulative variance contribution rate of 62.32%. The content validity index of each item on the 34-item scale was between 0.81 and 1.0, and the scale-content validity index/ average was 0.97. The correlation coefficient between each item and its dimension was between 0.399 and 0.760, the correlation coefficients between dimensions were between 0.150 and 0.382, and the correlation coefficients between each dimension and the total scale were between 0.390 and 0.845. Differences for all comparisons were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the total scale was 0.864, and the split-half reliability of the total scale was 0.923. Conclusion: All the statistical procedures performed in the validity and reliability stages of the study showed that MLSPCE is a valid and reliable tool for measuring medication literacy among Chinese parents of children with epilepsy.

Transcriptome-wide association analyses reveal the impact of regulatory variants on rice panicle architecture and causal gene regulatory networks.

Panicle architecture is a key determinant of rice grain yield and is mainly determined at the 1-2 mm young panicle stage. Here, we investigated the transcriptome of the 1-2 mm young panicles from 275 rice varieties and identified thousands of genes whose expression levels were associated with panicle traits. Multimodel association studies suggested that many small-effect genetic loci determine spikelet per panicle (SPP) by regulating the expression of genes associated with panicle traits. We found that alleles at cis-expression quantitative trait loci of SPP-associated genes underwent positive selection, with a strong preference for alleles increasing SPP. We further developed a method that integrates the associations of cis- and trans-expression components of genes with traits to identify causal genes at even small-effect loci and construct regulatory networks. We identified 36 putative causal genes of SPP, including SDT (MIR156j) and OsMADS17, and inferred that OsMADS17 regulates SDT expression, which was experimentally validated. Our study reveals the impact of regulatory variants on rice panicle architecture and provides new insights into the gene regulatory networks of panicle traits.

Technical efficiency of the urban gas industry in china.

China's Paris Agreement Pledge and recent introduction of an Emissions Trading Scheme have created a need for information on where it makes the most economic sense to use different sources of energy. With lower carbon dioxide emissions, natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas provide cleaner sources of energy relative to coal. Although it is practically crucial to investigate the use of these two sources, empirical studies are limited due to lack of data. To fill the research gap, this paper studies the efficiency of natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas sector in China by using data from 24 major province-level divisions over the years 2006-2015. Efficiency is defined as the utility's ability to produce the highest output given fixed inputs. We find that: (1) GDP per capita and high customer density are associated with higher levels of efficiency and (2) utilities that serve higher proportions of households (as opposed to industry and firms) are associated with lower levels of efficiency. Policy makers can use this information to address China's energy needs due to rapid urbanization while also pursuing Paris Agreement goals.

Comprehensive transcriptional variability analysis reveals gene networks regulating seed oil content of Brassica napus.

BACKGROUND: Regulation of gene expression plays an essential role in controlling the phenotypes of plants. Brassica napus (B. napus) is an important source for the vegetable oil in the world, and the seed oil content is an important trait of B. napus. RESULTS: We perform a comprehensive analysis of the transcriptional variability in the seeds of B. napus at two developmental stages, 20 and 40 days after flowering (DAF). We detect 53,759 and 53,550 independent expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) for 79,605 and 76,713 expressed genes at 20 and 40 DAF, respectively. Among them, the local eQTLs are mapped to the adjacent genes more frequently. The adjacent gene pairs are regulated by local eQTLs with the same open chromatin state and show a stronger mode of expression piggybacking. Inter-subgenomic analysis indicates that there is a feedback regulation for the homoeologous gene pairs to maintain partial expression dosage. We also identify 141 eQTL hotspots and find that hotspot87-88 co-localizes with a QTL for the seed oil content. To further resolve the regulatory network of this eQTL hotspot, we construct the XGBoost model using 856 RNA-seq datasets and the Basenji model using 59 ATAC-seq datasets. Using these two models, we predict the mechanisms affecting the seed oil content regulated by hotspot87-88 and experimentally validate that the transcription factors, NAC13 and SCL31, positively regulate the seed oil content. CONCLUSIONS: We comprehensively characterize the gene regulatory features in the seeds of B. napus and reveal the gene networks regulating the seed oil content of B. napus.

Examining the spatiotemporal variations and inequality of China's provincial CO2 emissions.

Tremendous energy consumption appears as rapid economic development, leading to large amount of CO2 emissions. Although plentiful studies have been made into the driving factors of CO2 emissions, the existing literatures that take the spatial differences and temporal changes into consideration are few. Therefore, this study first analyzes the variations of total CO2 emissions' spatial distribution from 2008 to 2017 and present the changes of driving factors, finding significant spatial autocorrelation in CO2 emissions at the province level, and that urbanization rate, per capita GDP and per capita CO2 emissions increased significantly, but energy consumption structure and trade openness decreased. We then compared the effects of different factors affecting CO2 emissions, using classic linear regression model, panel data model, and the geographically weighted regression (GWR) model, and the three models roughly agree on the effects of factors. The GWR model considering spatial heterogeneity provides more detailed results. Population, urbanization rate, per capita carbon emissions, energy consumption structure, and trade openness all have positive effects, while per capita GDP has a two-way impact on CO2 emissions. The influence of urbanization rate and energy consumption structure in the central and western regions increased even faster than in eastern regions, and the impacts of trade openness in lower and higher opening areas are more significant. The population and per capita CO2 emission have declining influences, among which the influence of population in coastal areas declined more slowly, while the rate of decline of per capita CO2 emission was positively correlated with the local total CO2 emissions. The Lorenz curve and the Gini coefficient reveal the inequality distribution of CO2 emissions in various regions, with the highest CO2 emissions growth in the medium-economic-level areas, where the key area of carbon mitigation is. Finally, per capita GDP reveals that China as a whole has the trend of inverted N-shape Kuznets curve, and the underdeveloped regions are in the rising stage between the two inflection points, while developed regions are at the end of the rising stage and about to reach the second inflection point.

Multi-scaled normal mode analysis method for dynamics simulation of protein-membrane complexes: A case study of potassium channel gating motion correlations.

Membrane proteins play critically important roles in many cellular activities such as ions and small molecule transportation, signal recognition, and transduction. In order to fulfill their functions, these proteins must be placed in different membrane environments and a variety of protein-lipid interactions may affect the behavior of these proteins. One of the key effects of protein-lipid interactions is their ability to change the dynamics status of membrane proteins, thus adjusting their functions. Here, we present a multi-scaled normal mode analysis (mNMA) method to study the dynamics perturbation to the membrane proteins imposed by lipid bi-layer membrane fluctuations. In mNMA, channel proteins are simulated at all-atom level while the membrane is described with a coarse-grained model. mNMA calculations clearly show that channel gating motion can tightly couple with a variety of membrane deformations, including bending and twisting. We then examined bi-channel systems where two channels were separated with different distances. From mNMA calculations, we observed both positive and negative gating correlations between two neighboring channels, and the correlation has a maximum as the channel center-to-center distance is close to 2.5 times of their diameter. This distance is larger than recently found maximum attraction distance between two proteins embedded in membrane which is 1.5 times of the protein size, indicating that membrane fluctuation might impose collective motions among proteins within a larger area. The hybrid resolution feature in mNMA provides atomic dynamics information for key components in the system without costing much computer resource. We expect it to be a conventional simulation tool for ordinary laboratories to study the dynamics of very complicated biological assemblies. The source code is available upon request to the authors.

More severe manifestations and poorer short-term prognosis of ganglioside-associated Guillain-Barré syndrome in Northeast China.

Ganglioside as a neurotrophic drug has been hitherto widely used in China, although Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) following intravenous ganglioside treatment was reported in Europe several decades ago. We identified 7 patients who developed GBS after intravenous use of gangliosides (ganglioside+ group) and compared their clinical data with those of 77 non-ganglioside-associated GBS patients (ganglioside- group) in 2013, aiming at gaining the distinct features of ganglioside-associated GBS. Although the mean age, protein levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and frequency of cranial nerve involvement were similar between the two groups, the Hughes Functional Grading Scale (HFGS) score and the Medical Research Council (MRC) sum score at nadir significantly differed (4.9 ± 0.4 vs 3.6 ± 1.0; 7.7 ± 5.5 vs 36.9 ± 14.5, both p<0.001), indicating a higher disease severity of ganglioside-associated GBS. A higher ratio of patients with ganglioside-associated GBS required mechanical ventilation (85.7% vs 15.6%, p<0.01). The short-term prognosis of ganglioside-associated GBS, as measured by the HFGS score and the MRC sum score at discharge, was poorer (4.3 ± 0.5 vs 2.8 ± 1.1; 17.3 ± 12.9 vs 46.0 ± 13.9, both p<0.001). All the patients in the ganglioside+ group presented an axonal form of GBS, namely acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN). When compared with the AMAN patients in the ganglioside- group, more severe functional deficits at nadir and poorer recovery after standard treatment were still prominent in ganglioside-associated GBS. Anti-GM1 and anti-GT1a antibodies were detectable in patients with AMAN while not in patients with the demyelinating subtype of GBS. The concentrations of these antibodies in patients with AMAN were insignificantly different between the ganglioside+ and ganglioside- groups. In sum, ganglioside-associated GBS may be a devastating side effect of intravenous use of gangliosides, which usually manifests a more severe clinical course and poorer outcome.

Unusual heat stroke caused by herbal therapy with traditional Chinese medicine.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) comprises a range of traditional medical practices that originate in China, including herbal medicine as a major therapy. Through its 4 natures; namely, cold, hot, warm, and cool, herbal medicine may regulate sympathetic nerves and basal metabolic rate and affect the CNS and the endocrine system. Heat stroke is a severely life-threatening heat-related illness that is most commonly seen during summer heat waves and high environmental temperatures. The intake of medications or toxins is considered one of the risk factors leading to heat stroke, as they may affect body thermoregulation. We report a case of heat stroke that was associated with herbal therapy with TCM. This case highlights the importance of paying more attention to unidentified folk prescriptions in the use of TCM.

Genes "waiting" for recruitment by the adaptive immune system: the insights from amphioxus.

In seeking evidence of the existence of adaptive immune system (AIS) in ancient chordate, cDNA clones of six libraries from a protochordate, the Chinese amphioxus, were sequenced. Although the key molecules such as TCR, MHC, Ig, and RAG in AIS have not been identified from our database, we demonstrated in this study the extensive molecular evidence for the presence of genes homologous to many genes that are involved in AIS directly or indirectly, including some of which may represent the putative precursors of vertebrate AIS-related genes. The comparative analyses of these genes in different model organisms revealed the different fates of these genes during evolution. Their gene expression pattern suggested that the primitive digestive system is the pivotal place of the origin and evolution of the AIS. Our studies support the general statement that AIS appears after the jawless/jawed vertebrate split. However our study further reveals the fact that AIS is in its twilight in amphioxus and the evolution of the molecules in amphioxus are waiting for recruitment by the emergence of AIS.

Identification and characterisation of a homolog of an activation gene for the recombination activating gene 1 (RAG 1) in amphioxus.

Expression of recombination activating genes (RAG) involved in the V (D) J recombination is regulated by the RAG1 gene activator (RGA) in mammals. The sequence of a cDNA clone from an amphioxus cDNA library was found to be homologous to that of RGA from mouse stromal cells with 45% identity. The full-length cDNA sequence comprises 1119 bp and encodes a putative protein of 210 amino acid residues. Characterisation of the amino acid sequence revealed that two MtN3 domains and seven transmembrane spans are present in this protein, indicating a potential role as a plasma membrane protein. This gene is expressed in many tissues and at differential developmental stages. A high expression level of RGA is detected in gonad tissues, and gastrula embryo and adult stages. The presence of the RGA gene in amphioxus suggests that the signal pathway required for the expression of RAG could exist in this primitive protochordate. It also implies that in the related molecules, primitive adaptive immunity may have existed in cephalochordate although the complete machinery of VDJ rearrangement may not be formed.

Molecular profile of the unique species of traditional Chinese medicine, Chinese seahorse (Hippocampus kuda Bleeker).

A cDNA library of male Chinese seahorse (Hippocampus kuda Bleeker) was constructed to investigate the molecular profile of seahorse as one of the most famous traditional Chinese medicine materials, and to reveal immunological and physiological mechanisms of seahorse as one of the most primitive vertebrates at molecular level. A total of 3372 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) consisting of 1911 unique genes (345 clusters and 1566 singletons) were examined in the present study. Identification of the genes related to immune system, paternal brooding and physiological regulation provides not only valuable insights into the molecular mechanism of immune system in teleost fish but also plausible explanations for pharmacological activities of Chinese seahorse. Furthermore, the occurrence of high prevalent C-type lectins suggested that a lectin-complement pathway might exert a more dominant function in the innate immune system of teleost than mammal. Carbohydrate recognition domain (CRD) without a collagen-like region in the lectins of seahorse was likely an ancient characteristic of lectins similar to invertebrates.

EST analysis of mRNAs expressed in neurula of Chinese amphioxus.

Amphioxus, a cephalochordate, is the closest living relative to the vertebrates. In order to investigate the molecular mechanisms of the early embryogenesis of amphioxus, we constructed a neurula embryo cDNA library of Chinese amphioxus (Branchiostoma belcheri tsingtauense) and generated 5235 expressed sequenced tags in the present study. The initial ESTs consisted of 638 clusters and 1855 singletons, which revealed approximately 2493 unique genes in the data set. Of these sequences, 35.52% ESTs matched to known genes, 12.76% matched to other ESTs, and 51.71% had no match to any known sequences in GenBank. Interestingly we found homologous genes related to neural development and human disease. Bioinformatic analysis showed the direct evidence that the gene homologue found only in vertebrates in previous studies also exists in the amphioxus genome. This study provides a preliminary view of the gene information involved in the development of neurula embryos of Chinese amphioxus and helps our understanding of vertebrate evolution at gene level.