Proteome Analysis of Pathogen-Responsive Proteins from Apple Leaves Induced by the Alternaria Blotch <i>Alternaria alternata</i>

<div><p>Understanding the defence mechanisms used by apple leaves against <i>Alternaria alternate</i> pathogen infection is important for breeding purposes. To investigate the ultrastructural differences between leaf tissues of susceptible and resistant seedlings, in vitro inoculation assays and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis were conducted with two different inoculation assays. The results indicated that the resistant leaves may have certain antifungal activity against <i>A</i>. <i>alternate</i> that is lacking in susceptible leaves. To elucidate the two different host responses to <i>A</i>. <i>alternate</i> infection in apples, the proteomes of susceptible and resistant apple leaves that had or had not been infected with pathogen were characterised using two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-TOF MS). MS identified 43 differentially expressed proteins in two different inoculation assays. The known proteins were categorised into 5 classes, among these proteins, some pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins, such as beta-1,3-glucanase, ascorbate peroxidase (APX), glutathione peroxidase (GPX) and mal d1, were identified in susceptible and resistant hosts and were associated with disease resistance of the apple host. In addition, the different levels of mal d1 in susceptible and resistant hosts may contribute to the outstanding anti-disease properties of resistant leaves against <i>A</i>. <i>alternate</i>. Taken together, the resistance mechanisms of the apple host against <i>A</i>. <i>alternate</i> may be a result of the PR proteins and other defence-related proteins. Given the complexity of the biology involved in the interaction between apple leaves and the <i>A</i>. <i>alternate</i> pathogen, further investigation will yield more valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms of suppression of the <i>A</i>. <i>alternate</i> pathogen. Overall, we outline several novel insights into the response of apple leaves to pathogen attacks. These findings increase our knowledge of pathogen resistance mechanisms, and the data will also promote further investigation into the regulation of the expression of these target proteins.</p></div

A Mechanistic Study of Thermal Decomposition of 1,1,2,2-Tetramethyldisilane Using Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoionization Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

Thermal decomposition of 1,1,2,2-tetramethyldisilane was performed by flash pyrolysis in a SiC microreactor in the temperature range from 295 to 1340 K, followed by molecular beam sampling and vacuum ultraviolet photoionization mass spectrometry analysis. Density functional theory investigations on the energetics of reactants, intermediates, and products were carried out to support the experimental observations. Energetics for 1,1,2,2-tetramethyldisilane initiation decomposition reactions and important secondary reactions were calculated. Dimethylsilane, dimethylsilyl radicals, dimethylsilylene, trimethylsilane, and tetramethyldisilene were determined as the primary reaction products in the initiation thermal decompositions of 1,1,2,2-tetramethyldisilane. Further decomposition reactions of tetramethyldisilene, such as production of dimethylsilene (m/z = 72) and eventually SiC3H4 (m/z = 68) fragments, were examined. Other products from secondary reactions of dimethylsilane and dimethylsilylene such as SiC2H2–6 and SiCH0–4 were also observed. The comprehensive pyrolysis mechanism of 1,1,2,2-tetramethyldisilane was proposed

Table1_E-Cigarette Usage and Arthritis in the United States, a Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey.docx

Aim: The prevalence of the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) has grown rapidly in the past decade in the United States. While numerous studies have demonstrated combustible cigarette is closely associated with an increased risk of arthritis diseases, little is known about the effect of e-cigarette usage on inflammatory arthritis diseases. We aimed to determinate if e-cigarette usage is associated with an increased risk of inflammatory arthritis.Methods: Data were obtained from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which is the largest national telephone-based survey of randomly sampled adults in the United States. A total of 924,882 participants with information on e-cigarette usage and inflammatory arthritis were included. We used multivariable logistic regression to estimate the risk of arthritis associated with e-cigarette usage.Results: Of the 924,882 participants, there were 30,569 (3.3%) current e-cigarette users, and 314,190 (25.9%) reported to have inflammatory arthritis diseases. In the fully adjusted model, we observed that the odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval) of inflammatory arthritis diseases was 1.81 (95% CI, 1.70-1.93) for current e-cigarette users compared with never e-cigarette users. The ORs of inflammatory arthritis diseases were 1.31 (95% CI, 1.18-1.47), and 1.55 (95% CI, 1.42-1.69) among sole e-cigarette and dual users compared with never e-cigarette users, respectively.Conclusions: This is the first study to observe a cross-sectional association between e-cigarette usage and inflammatory arthritis diseases, and the findings were consistent in both sole-e-cigarette users and dual users. Our findings provide evidence that e-cigarette usage might be an important risk factor for arthritis diseases, which may have regulatory implications for e-cigarette control.</p

Venn diagram showing the distribution of protein spots expressed as indicated in Fig 2.

<p>Venn diagram showing the distribution of protein spots expressed as indicated in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0122233#pone.0122233.g002" target="_blank">Fig 2</a>.</p

Differentially expressed proteins identified from resistant (R) and susceptible (S) leaves.

<p>Differentially expressed proteins identified from resistant (R) and susceptible (S) leaves.</p

2-DE analysis of proteins induced by the <i>A</i>. <i>alternata</i> pathogen in resistant (R) and susceptible (S) leaves.

<p>Total protein (800 μg) was separated on 2D gels (pH 4–7) and stained with CBB R-350. Approximate molecular masses and pIs are indicated in the margins. Circles indicate the 43 proteins identified by MALDI-TOF-TOF/MS that changed in abundance more than 1.5-fold between controls and treated samples. The affected proteins are numbered, and the numbers correspond to the numbers in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0122233#pone.0122233.g003" target="_blank">Fig 3</a>. This figure represents three biological replicates.</p

Functional categorisation of the identified proteins that are differentially regulated in resistant (R) and susceptible (S) leaves infected with the <i>A</i>. <i>alternata</i> pathogen.

<p>A total of 43 identified proteins were assigned to the functional categories. The Roman numerals of the categories correspond to the functional categories described in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0122233#pone.0122233.g003" target="_blank">Fig 3</a>. The percentage represents the proportion of proteins in each category.</p

Enhancing the Performance of Perovskite Solar Cells via the Functional Group Synergistic Effect in Interfacial Passivation Materials

Interfacial defects are considered to be a stumbling block in producing highly efficient perovskite solar cells (PSCs), so a more reasonable design is required for interfacial passivation materials (IPMs) to achieve further improvements in PSC performance. Here, we use fluorine atom (−F) and methoxy (−OCH3) functional groups to modify the same molecular fragment, obtaining three kinds of IPMs named YZ-301, YZ-302, and YZ-303, respectively. Through the subtle combination of −F and −OCH3, the fragment in YZ-302 exhibits an enhanced electronegativity, rendering the correlative IPM with a stronger interaction with the perovskite layer. As a result, YZ-302 shows the best defect passivation and hole transport effect at the interface, and the PSC based on YZ-302 treatment achieves the best efficiency approaching 24%, which is better than the reference and devices with other IPMs, and it also has excellent device stability

Robust and Highly Transparent Photocurable Fluorinated Polyurethane Coating Prepared via Thiol-Click Reactions and What Essentially Influences Omniphobic Coating’s Anti-Graffiti Properties

Without a fragile micro/nanostructure, omniphobic coatings have a natural advantage over superomniphobic coatings in mechanical durability, especially when confronted with finger wipes and squeezes in practical use. Many reported omniphobic coatings with lower liquid sliding angles showed better ink trace resistance. However, according to our results, these two properties are not positively related. The respective critical factors for lowering the liquid sliding angle and resisting tiny contaminants, such as ink stroke and fingerprint, remain elusive. Through three steps of the thiol-click reaction, a surface-dried, highly transparent, mechanically and chemically robust, fluorinated polyurethane coating was photocured efficiently. Surfaces that exhibited better sliding performance but worse resistance to ink stroke and fingerprint were reported. Our results indicate that a heavy cross-linked structure was beneficial for the resistance to tiny contaminants, while the liquid sliding performance only depended on the surface fluorine content, especially the surface enrichment of flexible low-surface-tension chains. Interestingly, an unexpected transformation from a turbid dispersion to a transparent solution during the preparation was observed. The efficient thiol-click reaction induces a micelle-like structure to open and imparts high transparency to the final coatings. Therefore, this work provides useful information to facilitate the study of omniphobic coatings, as well as a good candidate in anti-graffiti applications

Data_Sheet_2_Exploring the causal factor effects of hypothyroidism on ischemic stroke: a two-sample Mendelian randomization study.ZIP

BackgroundObservational studies have suggested a possible association between hypothyroidism and increased risk of ischemic stroke. However, a causal relationship remains unclear.MethodsData on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with hypothyroidism and ischemic stroke were sourced from the FinnGens database and the UK Biobank of European descent. Both databases underwent separate two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses. A subsequent meta-analysis of MR results using a random-effects model was conducted to determine the causal relationship between hypothyroidism and ischemic stroke.ResultsAll five analyses indicated a positive causal relationship between hypothyroidism and ischemic stroke. MR analysis of the association between hypothyroidism and ischemic stroke yielded a result of the inverse variance weighted (IVW) method at 4.7411 (1.3598–16.5308), p = 0.0146. The analysis of ischemic stroke (without excluding controls) yielded a result of the IVW method of 4.5713 (1.3570–15.3986), p = 0.0142. MR analysis with cerebral infarction yielded a result of the IVW method at 1.0110 (1.0006–1.0215), p = 0.0373. The MR analysis with cerebrovascular disease sequelae yielded an IVW method result of 2.4556 (1.0291–5.8595), p = 0.0429. Analysis for the sequelae of cerebrovascular disease (without excluding controls) yielded an IVW method result of 2.4217 (1.0217–5.7402), p = 0.0446. No evidence of heterogeneity or horizontal pleiotropy was found. The meta-analysis of the five MR results was 2.24 (1.18–4.26), p = 0.025.ConclusionOur two-sample Mendelian randomization study suggested a causal relationship between hypothyroidism and ischemic stroke, indicating that hypothyroidism could be a risk factor for ischemic stroke. However, further studies are required to elucidate the underlying biological mechanisms.</p