ABSTRACT
The objective of this study was to assess the benefit of applying biochar instead of its feedstock in enhancing soil quality. To accomplish this, we investigated the short-term effects of two organic materials and their derived biochars on maize growth, soil properties, and microbial community in fluvo-aquic and red soil with a pot experiment. Five treatments were applied to each soil, namely, the addition of straw, manure, straw-derived biochar, manure-derived biochar, and the control with no addition of any organic materials and biochar. Our results revealed that straw decreased the shoot biomass of maize in both soils, while straw-derived biochar, manure and manure-derived biochar increased it by 51.50, 35.47 and 74.95% in fluvo-aquic soil and by 36.38, 117.57 and 67.05% in red soil compared with the control, respectively. Regarding soil properties, although all treatments increased soil total organic carbon, straw and manure exhibited more pronounced effects on improving permanganate-oxidizable carbon, basal respiration, and enzyme activity compared with their derived biochars. Manure and its biochar had more significant effects on improving soil available phosphorus, whereas straw and its biochar exhibited more ameliorating effects on available potassium. Straw and manure consistently decreased bacterial alpha diversity (Chao1 and Shannon index) and altered bacterial community composition in the two soils by increasing the relative abundances of Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Bacteroidota and decreasing those of Actinobacteriota, Chloroflexi, and Acidobacteriota. More specifically, straw had a greater effect on Proteobacteria, whereas manure affected Firmicutes more. While straw-derived biochar had no effect on bacterial diversity and bacterial community composition in both soils, manure-derived biochar increased bacterial diversity in the fluvo-aquic soil and altered bacterial community composition in the red soil by increasing the relative abundances of Proteobacteria and Bacteroidota and decreasing that of Firmicutes. In summary, owing to the input of active organic carbon, straw and manure exhibited more pronounced short-term effects on soil enzyme activity and bacterial community compared with their derived biochar. Furthermore, straw-derived biochar was found to be a better option than straw in promoting maize growth and nutrient resorption, while the choice of manure and its biochar should be determined by the soil type.
ABSTRACT
PSMB4, proteasome subunit ß4, is a member of the ubiquitin-proteasome family, and is elevated in a variety of malignancies. However, the expression level and related mechanism of PSMB4 in breast cancer remains unclear. Therefore, the present study investigated the expression level of PSMB4 in eight pairs of breast cancer and adjacent normal tissues. In addition, the relationship between the expression of PSMB4 and the clinical data of 92 breast cancer patients was discussed. First, it was found that PSMB4 expression was obviously upregulated in breast cancer tumor tissues and cell lines (MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7), and its level was significantly associated with tumor grade (P=0.005), tumor size (P=0.047), Ki-67 expression (P=0.040) and the poor prognosis of breast cancer. The present results demonstrated that PSMB4 could promote the proliferation of breast cancer cells, and was positively correlated with the expression of PCNA using an in vitro starvation-refeeding experiment. In addition, PSMB4siRNA transfection assay suggested that PSMB4 knockdown can decrease NF-κB activity and cell viability, and result in cell cycle arrest at the G1/S phase. These findings revealed that PSMB4 might facilitate breast cancer progression by promoting cell proliferation and viability. In summary, PSMB4 may be recognized as an efficacious prognostic marker and potential therapeutic target for breast cancer.
