Strengthened antioxidant capacity improves photosynthesis by regulating stomatal aperture and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase activity.

ABA is important for plant growth and development; however, it also inhibits photosynthesis by regulating the stomatal aperture and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase activity. Noteworthy, this negative effect can be alleviated by antioxidants including ascorbic acid (AsA) and catalase (CAT), but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Two rice cultivars, Zhefu802 (recurrent parent) and its near-isogenic line, fgl were selected and planted in a greenhouse with 30/24 °C (day/night) under natural sunlight conditions. Compared to fgl, Zhefu802 had significantly lower net photosynthetic rate (PN) and stomatal conductance (Cond) as well as significantly higher ABA and H2O2 contents. However, AsA and CAT increased PN, Cond, and stomatal aperture, which decreased H2O2 and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. In this process, AsA and CAT significantly increased the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase activity, while they strongly decreased the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate oxygenase activity, and finally caused an obvious decrease in the ratio of photorespiration (Pr) to PN. Additionally, AsA and CAT significantly increased the expression levels of RbcS and RbcL genes of leaves, while H2O2 significantly decreased them, especially the RbcS gene. In summary, the removal of H2O2 by AsA and CAT can improve the leaf photosynthesis by alleviating the inhibition on the stomatal conductance and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase capacity caused by ABA.

[Prevalence of tonsilloliths and CT diagnosis].

Objective: To investigate the prevalence, gender and age distribution characteristics of tonsilloliths and its CT diagnosis, in order to improve the knowledge of clinicians. Methods: The images of 2 710 patients who underwent head and neck CT scans from November 2015 to November 2016 were retrospectively reviewed, the prevalence, gender and age distribution of tonsilloliths and CT manifestation were analyzed. SPSS 18.0 was used for statistical analysis. Results: Tonsilloliths were found in 383 (14.1%) of the 2 710 patients, including 217 men and 166 women. The prevalence was 15.1% in men and 13.1% in women, and no gender difference was seen. The age of patients with tonsilloliths ranged from 6-88 years, and the mean age was (51.1±16.8) years. The prevalence of tonsilloliths in patients 40 years and younger was significantly lower than in those who were over 40 years (χ(2)=15.201, P<0.001), and the prevalence of tonsilloliths was positively correlated with age(r=0.812, P=0.008). One hundred and twenty eight cases of tonsilloliths were located on the right side, and 157 were located on tleft side. Tonsilloliths were detected bilaterally in 98 patients. There was no significant difference between left and right sides(χ(2)=1.919, P=0.166). Most of tonsilloliths showed a single small tonsillolith, 60.6% of tonsilloliths showed only one tonsillolith, whereas 39.4% showed two or more. The size of tonsilloliths ranged from 1.0 to 10.0 mm, the mean maximum diameter was (2.3±1.2) mm, and 86.7% of tonsilloliths with a maximum diameter of no more than 3.0 mm. Tonsilloliths showed dot, round or oval hyperdense in tonsillar crypt or parenchyma. CT attenuation of majority tonsilloliths was over 120 Hu. Conclusion: Tonsilloliths are more common than previously suggested, its CT diagnosis is not difficult, and the knowledge of clinician and radiologist needs to be improved.

Association between 1p13.3 genomic markers and coronary artery disease: a meta-analysis involving patients and controls.

Recently, genome-wide association studies on cardio-vascular disease identified a series of associated single nucleotide polymorphisms in an intergenic region of chromosome 1p13.3. We investigated the association of this locus with cardiovascular disease in 13 case-control studies and undertook a meta-analysis for effect size, heterogeneity, publication bias, and strength of evidence. English and Chinese language articles were screened for the association of 1p13.3 single nucleotide polymorphisms with coronary heart/artery disease or myocardial infarction as primary outcomes. The included articles provided race, numbers of participants, and the data necessary to compute an odds ratio. Articles were excluded if other outcomes were reported or 1p13.3 single nucleotide polymorphisms were not included. Thirty-five articles were initially identified and 12 were eventually included in the meta-analysis. rs599839 and rs646776, representing the 1p13.3 locus, were genotyped in 13 case-control studies involving a total of 17,766 patients and 20,272 controls. For rs599839 (11 data sets), using a random-effect model, the summary odds ratio was 1.17 (95% confidence interval = 1.07-1.28, P = 0.0001). For rs646776 (4 data sets), using a fixed-effects model, the summary odds ratio was 1.13 (95% confidence interval = 1.06-1.21, P = 0.0001). This broad replication provided unprecedented evidence for an association between genetic variants at chromosome 1p13.3 and the risk of cardiovascular disease.