Preliminary Analysis of Transcriptome Response of Dioryctria sylvestrella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) Larvae Infected with Beauveria bassiana under Short-Term Starvation.

The Dioryctria genus contains several destructive borer pests that are found in coniferous forests in the Northern Hemisphere. Beauveria bassiana spore powder was tested as a new method of pest control. In this study, Dioryctria sylvestrella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) was used as the object. A transcriptome analysis was performed on a freshly caught group, a fasting treatment control group, and a treatment group inoculated with a wild B. bassiana strain, SBM-03. Under the conditions of 72-h fasting and a low temperature of 16 ± 1 °C, (i) in the control group, 13,135 of 16,969 genes were downregulated. However, in the treatment group, 14,558 of 16,665 genes were upregulated. (ii) In the control group, the expression of most genes in the upstream and midstream of the Toll and IMD pathways was downregulated, but 13 of the 21 antimicrobial peptides were still upregulated. In the treatment group, the gene expression of almost all antimicrobial peptides was increased. Several AMPs, including cecropin, gloverin, and gallerimycin, may have a specific inhibitory effect on B. bassiana. (iii) In the treatment group, one gene in the glutathione S-transferase system and four genes in the cytochrome P450 enzyme family were upregulated, with a sharp rise in those that were upregulated significantly. In addition, most genes of the peroxidase and catalase families, but none of the superoxide dismutase family were upregulated significantly. Through innovative fasting and lower temperature control, we have a certain understanding of the specific defense mechanism by which D. sylvestrella larvae may resist B. bassiana in the pre-wintering period. This study paves the way for improving the toxicity of B. bassiana to Dioryctria spp.

The effect of spraying bacterial and fungal solutions on Korean pine Pinus koraiensis Sieb. et Zucc. cone development and seed quality when sprayed during the flowering phase.

Korean pine is an economically essential afforestation species limited by the unreasonable collection of cones, indiscriminate use of chemical pesticides and pest damage. This study aimed to determine whether spraying bacterial or fungal solutions affected insect pests, cone development, and the seed quality of Korean pine Pinus koraiensis Sieb. et Zucc. The experiment was conducted in a forest plantation in Linkou County (Heilongjiang, China) in 2019. Four fungal strains and one bacterial strain were applied during the flowering phase of Korean pine. The results after a year and a half of study indicated that a high concentration of Bacillus thuringiensis 223176 promoted cone development, increased seed weight, and reduced the proportion of damaged cones. Under this treatment, there were 15.873% damaged cones; the seed weight reached 0.829 g, and there were 82.738% fully developed cones. Trees treated with the second most effective strain, Beauveria bassiana 122077, had 30.556% damaged cones and an average seed weight of 0.810 g. Leucanicillium antillanum 01 performed the worst in this study. The seed weight was only 0.775 g, and the damaged and fully developed cones were 52.444 and 41.773%, respectively. In summary, spraying bacterial or fungal solutions during the flowering stage of Korean pine positively impacted seed quality and effectively decreased damage by the lepidopteran species that feed on the cones and seeds in this study.

Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis Reveals Different Immunity but Shared Renal Pathology Between IgA Nephropathy and Lupus Nephritis.

Both IgA nephropathy (IgAN) and lupus nephritis (LN) are immunity-related diseases with a complex, polygenic, and pleiotropic genetic architecture. However, the mechanism by which the genetic variants impart immunity or renal dysfunction remains to be clarified. In this study, using gene expression datasets as a quantitative readout of peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC)- and kidney-based molecular phenotypes, we analyzed the similarities and differences in the patterns of gene expression perturbations associated with the systematic and kidney immunity in IgAN and LN. Original gene expression datasets for PBMC, glomerulus, and tubule from IgAN and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients as well as corresponding controls were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The similarities and differences in the expression patterns were detected according to gene differential expression. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to cluster and screen the co-expressed gene modules. The disease correlations were then identified by cell-specific and functional enrichment analyses. By combining these results with the genotype data, we identified the differentially expressed genes causatively associated with the disease. There was a significant positive correlation with the kidney expression profile, but no significant correlation with PBMC. Three co-expression gene modules were screened by WGCNA and enrichment analysis. Among them, blue module was enriched for glomerulus and podocyte (P < 0.05) and positively correlated with both diseases (P < 0.05), mainly via immune regulatory pathways. Pink module and purple module were enriched for tubular epithelium and correlated with both diseases (P < 0.05) through predominant cell death and extracellular vesicle pathways, respectively. In genome-wide association study (GWAS) enrichment analysis, blue module was identified as the high-risk gene module that distinguishes LN from SLE and contains PSMB8 and PSMB9, the susceptibility genes for IgAN. In conclusion, IgAN and LN showed different systematic immunity but similarly abnormal immunity in kidney. Immunological pathways may be involved in the glomerulopathy and cell death together with the extracellular vesicle pathway, which may be involved in the tubular injury in both diseases. Blue module may cover the causal susceptibility gene for IgAN and LN.

Helicobacter pylori infection is associated with elevated galactose-deficient IgA1 in IgA nephropathy.

Background: Mucosal immunity plays an important role in the pathogenesis of IgA nephropathy (IgAN). This study aimed to investigate if infection of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), a common bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract, associated with IgAN.Methods: This study included 261 patients with IgAN and 46 healthy controls. Clinical information and plasma samples were collected from patients and healthy controls. H. pylori infection was confirmed by western blot. Plasma IgA1 and galactose-deficient IgA1 (Gd-IgA1) levels were detected by specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Results: Total H. pylori infection rates showed no statistical differences between IgAN patients and healthy controls, but the infection rates of type I H. pylori in IgAN patients were significantly higher than those in healthy controls (44.4 vs. 28.3%, p = 0.040). Compared with uninfected patients, the systolic blood pressure, 24-h proteinuria, and blood urea nitrogen levels were significantly higher in patients with H. pylori infection (126.0 ± 15.5 vs. 119.6 ± 14.5 mmHg, p = 0.010; 1.8 ± 2.7 vs. 1.2 ± 1.4 g/24h, p = 0.013; 7.9 ± 5.4 vs. 6.7 ± 3.9 µmol/L, p = 0.042), especially in patients with type I infection (126.5 ± 15.4 vs. 119.6 ± 14.5 mmHg, p = 0.002; 1.9 ± 2.9 vs. 1.2 ± 1.4 g/24 h, p = 0.033; 8.1 ± 5.6 vs. 6.7 ± 3.9 µmol/L, p = 0.041). Similarly, patients with IgAN and type I H. pylori infection showed higher plasma Gd-IgA1 levels than uninfected patients (5.5 ± 2.2 vs. 4.5 ± 2.2 µg/mL, p = 0.037).Conclusions: Virulent type I H. pylori infection is more common in patients with IgAN. Patients with IgAN and type I H. pylori infection showed lower renal function and higher underglycosylation of plasma IgA1.

Association of MYH9 Polymorphisms with Hypertension in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease in China.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: This study explored the correlation between hypertension and non-muscle myosin heavy chain 9 (MYH9) gene polymorphisms in Chinese chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. METHODS: This case-control study included 301 patients with CKD and 293 healthy controls. The E1 haplotype single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) rs3752462 and rs4821480 were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. The association between MYH9 polymorphisms and high systolic blood pressure (SBP ≥ 140 mmHg) susceptibility in CKD patients was analysed. RESULTS: The cases and controls had similar genotype and allele distributions at rs3752462 and rs4821480. No GG genotype at rs4821480 was observed. Patients with SBP < 140 mmHg were more likely to have the CC genotype (17.1%) than patients with SBP ≥ 140 mmHg (4.3%) (P = 0.001). Creatinine clearance (OR = 0.99, 95% CI = 0.98-0.10, P = 0.01) was associated with SBP in patients with CKD. The risk of SBP ≥ 140 mmHg was 0.24-fold greater among patients with the CC genotype than among patients with the TT genotype (P = 0.002). CONCLUSION: The rs3752462 polymorphism of MYH9 is associated with SBP in patients with CKD. The T allele in the dominant model was associated with an elevated risk for high SBP.