Integrative analysis of the metabolome and transcriptome reveals the molecular mechanism of chlorogenic acid synthesis in peach fruit

As the most abundant phenolic acid in peach fruit, chlorogenic acid (CGA) is an important entry point for the development of natural dietary supplements and functional foods. However, the metabolic and regulation mechanisms underlying its accumulation in peach fruits remain unclear. In this study, we evaluated the composition and content of CGAs in mature fruits of 205 peach cultivars. In peach fruits, three forms of CGA (52.57%), neochlorogenic acid (NCGA, 47.13%), and cryptochlorogenic acid (CCGA, 0.30%) were identified. During the growth and development of peach fruits, the content of CGAs generally showed a trend of rising first and then decreasing. Notably, the contents of quinic acid, shikimic acid, p-coumaroyl quinic acid, and caffeoyl shikimic acid all showed similar dynamic patterns to that of CGA, which might provide the precursor material basis for the accumulation of CGA in the later stage. Moreover, CGA, lignin, and anthocyanins might have a certain correlation and these compounds work together to maintain a dynamic balance. By the comparative transcriptome analysis, 8 structural genes (Pp4CL, PpCYP98A, and PpHCT) and 15 regulatory genes (PpMYB, PpWRKY, PpERF, PpbHLH, and PpWD40) were initially screened as candidate genes of CGA biosynthesis. Our findings preliminarily analyzed the metabolic and molecular regulation mechanisms of CGA biosynthesis in peach fruit, which provided a theoretical basis for developing high-CGA content peaches in future breeding programs

Aroma Profiling Analysis of Peach Flowers Based on Electronic Nose Detection

Aroma profiling peach flowers can improve the landscape and ecological value of the surrounding environment. In order to preliminarily explore and screen the flower aromas of peach germplasms, the floral aroma profiles of 50 peach germplasms were analyzed by electronic nose detection. The clustering results from ten sensors showed that it was possible to identify each peach blossom aroma type. ‘Gansutao2’ was separately classified as cluster I; ‘Yuntaishanshantao’, ‘Dazhuanggansutao’, and ‘Zhouxingshantao’ as cluster II; ‘Xinjiangpantao’ and ‘Xinjianghuangrou’ as cluster III; and the remaining germplasms as cluster IV. The flower aromas of clusters I, II, and III were different from that of cluster IV and were mainly highlighted by the significant differences in the response values of the three main sensors, which were W1S (methane), W1W (hydrogen sulfide), and W5S (nitrogen oxides). The principal component analysis and significance analysis of the sensor response values showed that ‘Hua3’, ‘Hongfenjiaren’, and ‘Yuntaishanshantao’ had special flower aromas. The response values of these three varieties produced by the W1S, W1W, and W5S sensors and two aromatic sensors, W2W (aromatic components and organic sulfides) and W3S (methane-aliph), were significantly different from most of the other germplasms. The ‘Yuntaishanshantao’ response values produced by the five sensors’ were low, which showed that it had a light aroma, while the ‘Hongfenjiaren’ and ‘Hua3’ values were high, which showed that they had strong aromas. The results from this study provided basic data that could be used to screen peach germplasms with obvious floral aromas, cultivate new varieties with strong aromas, and aid the development and utilization of peach floral aroma substances

Evaluating the difference in clinical efficacy for t(11;14) multiple myeloma patients with CD20- or CD20+

Objective To examine the differences in therapy response and confirm the effective regimen for multiple myeloma (MM) patients with t (11; 14)/CD20- or CD20+, for the selection of transplantation as early treatment. Methods To find the differences in therapy response and to confirm the effective regimen for multiple myeloma (MM) patients with t (11; 14)/CD20- or CD20+, for the selection of transplantation as the early treatment. There were three cytogenetics groups: t(11; 14)/CD20- or CD20+ and low-risk profile including normal or cytogenetics other than t (11; 14). Eligible patients received the bortezomib-based induction and lenalidomide-based consolidation/maintenance regimen. Results Patients with t(11;14) gained adverse therapy response for bortezomib induction regimen than other low-risk arm (OR rate: 11.1% versus 84.0% versus 85.2%, P＜0.01). A prospective found that although the patients with t(11;14)/CD20- showed the poor overall response for the bortezomib-based regimen, lenalidomide-based treatment schedule makes them gain a similar therapy advantage comparing with t(11;14)/ CD20+ and other low-risk group in the study The subgroup analyses of progression-free survival(PFS) and overall survival(OS) by continued lenalidomide-based consolidation/maintenance treatment also showed a benefit for lenalidomide therapy compared with observation regardless of cytogenetic risk profile and response at baseline (PFS at 4 years reached 75.0% versus 77.1% versus 84.2%, OS at 4 years was 75.0% versus 88.5% versus 90.4%, respectively). Moreover, the lenalidomide regimen little induced the incidence of fatal complications and was tolerated. There were only 3.2%, 8.4% and 15.8% patients had agranulocytosis, peripheral neuropathy and infection of 3-4 grade. Conclusions Lenalidomide regimen is more effective for t (11, 14)/ CD20- risk MM and t(11;14)/CD20+ and other cytogenetically low-risk MM are consistent in PFS and OS. In addition, the initial response rate of MM patients with unsatisfactory bortezomib treatment can also be improved

Switchable Photonic Nanojet by Electro-Switching Nematic Liquid Crystals

This paper first presents a switchable photonic nanojet (PNJ) generated by a polystyrene (PS) microsphere immersed in nematic liquid crystals (NLCs). The PNJ is switched by applying external voltage, which originates from the refractive index change in the surrounding medium caused by the field-induced realignment of liquid crystal molecules. By tuning the refractive index of NLCs larger or smaller than that of the PS microsphere, the PNJ can be switched off or on. Moreover, we present an optimization study to seek a better electric energy focusing property of the PNJ. Our results reveal that the switchability of PNJ can be optimized by applying a shorter incident wavelength, a double-layer microsphere, and a PS ellipsoid. The full width at half-maximum (FWHM) generated by the PS ellipsoid is narrower than that generated by the microsphere with a shorter incident wavelength. The intensity contrast of the PS ellipsoid is higher than that of the double-layer microsphere. As a whole, the switchability of PNJ can be best optimized by a PS ellipsoid. This should open the way for the development of integrated photonic devices

Research Progress in the Numerical Simulation of Heat and Mass Transfer during Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing

Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM), which is able to create large metal components with high deposition rate and low equipment cost, has increasingly attracted attention from industrial sectors, including aerospace, shipbuilding, military equipment etc. During WAAM, the combined effects from arc characteristics, droplet transfer behaviour, molten pool flow and solidification, and heat accumulation under the complex thermal cycle plays a critical role in the deposition formation and quality, which also the theoretical basis of realizing the geometry and material properties in control. The emerging research on the numerical simulation of WAAM is reviewed in this article, and a comprehensive overview of the physical mechanism of WAAM based on different heat sources is also provided. The heat and mass transfer produced in different WAAM process are described to reveal their intrinsic connections. Common defects are depicted, including formation mechanism, inside factors, inhibition strategy. Methods for controlling the deposition process, geometry and quality are discussed, take into account the physical characteristics of WAAM. It is concluded in this paper that many challenges still exist in the numerical simulation of the WAAM process, and critical thinking and suggestions are proposed for its future development and application

Response of a Permanently Charged Polyelectrolyte Brush to External Ions: The Aspects of Structure and Dynamics

Structure and dynamics inside permanently charged polyelectrolyte brushes, sodium polystyrene sulfonate brushes, during their response to the introduction of external ions (NaCl) are investigated by neutron reflectivity and dielectric spectroscopy. Neutron reflectivity measurements show that the segmental density of the inner part of the brushes decreases and that of the outer part increases when the salt level is tuned from the salt-free condition to a moderate level (<10^–2 M)the brushes swell further compared with the salt-free condition. This is attributed to the breakup of the multiplets formed by dipole–dipole pairs, and by this process, the previously constrained chain segments by the multiplets are released. Dielectric spectroscopy discovers a giant dipole by the charge separation of the adsorbed counterions and the PSS^– chains, induced by electric field. The dynamics of the induced giant dipole is accelerated with the increase of external salt, as a result of the charge regularization by elevated salt level. At high-enough salt level, the screening effect reduces the electrostatic repulsion between the neighboring chains and makes the brushes shrink

Amino Acid Profiles in Peach (Prunus persica L.) Fruit

Amino acids play an interesting and important role in the metabolism of peaches. The objectives of this study were to investigate and compare amino acid profiles in peaches at harvest for future research about the resistance effects, nutritional value of amino acids in peaches and to produce high-quality peach wine. In the study, 10 peaches and nectarines, including white, yellow and red flesh varieties, were selected for amino acid concentration and composition by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Results showed sugar levels in nectarines were higher than in peaches in this study. High concentrations of total acids were found in &ldquo;Tropic Prince&rdquo;, &ldquo;Yixianhong&rdquo;, &ldquo;NJN76&rdquo; and &ldquo;Hongrou1&rdquo;. Malic acids had the highest concentrations, compared toquinic and citric acid concentrations. Total amino acids in yellow and white flesh varieties were over 1100 &micro;g/g FW, while red flesh varieties had total amino acids below 750 &micro;g/g FW. Asn was the highest concentration compared to other amino acids, with the high concentration of Asn in &ldquo;Tropical Prince&rsquo; (3279.15 &micro;g/g FW) and the lowest concentration in &ldquo;Touxinhong&rdquo; (559.60 &micro;g/g FW). &ldquo;Jinxia&rdquo;, &ldquo;Yuhua3&rdquo; and &ldquo;Chengxiang&rdquo; had better amino acid scores compared with others, in particularly the lowest value in the red flesh varieties. Finally, according to PCA and the heatmaps, amino acids in &ldquo;Chengxiang&rdquo;had evident differences to other varieties, which showed the different amino acid concentrations and composition. Overall, the results of this study highlighted three yellow flesh and one white flesh varieties that had satisfactory concentrations and components of amino acid values. In addition, amino acids were the precursors of aroma compounds, so these differences between varieties werea new way to screen the potential varieties for producing high quality peach wines with the anticipated specific characteristics

Carotenoid Profiling of Yellow-Flesh Peach Fruit

In this study, the carotenoid profiles and content in 132 cultivars of yellow-flesh peach having different fruit developmental periods (short, middle, and long), fruit surface indumenta (glabrous and pubescent skin), and flesh colors (yellow, golden, and orange) were investigated. We simultaneously analyzed and compared the levels of five carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin, &beta;-cryptoxanthin, &alpha;-carotene, and &beta;-carotene) through high-performance liquid chromatography. Large differences in carotenoid content among germplasms were observed, with coefficients of variation ranging from 21.24% to 67.78%. The carotenoid content, from high to low, was as follows: &beta;-carotene &gt; zeaxanthin &gt; &alpha;-carotene &gt; &beta;-cryptoxanthin &gt; lutein. We screened several varieties with high carotenoid content, including zeaxanthin in &lsquo;Ruiguang2&rsquo;, &beta;-cryptoxanthin in &lsquo;NJN76&rsquo; and &lsquo;TX4F244C&rsquo;, and &beta;-carotene and total carotenoids in &lsquo;Jintong7&rsquo;, &lsquo;77-26-7&rsquo;, and &lsquo;77-20-5&rsquo;. A longer fruit developmental period was associated with greater &beta;-carotene accumulation but lowered the zeaxanthin and &beta;-cryptoxanthin accumulation. The zeaxanthin, &beta;-carotene, and total carotenoid concentrations significantly increased as the flesh color deepened, but the lutein and &alpha;-carotene levels remained similar among the three flesh colors. The classification index of the indumenta significantly affected the &beta;-carotene and total carotenoid content (p &lt; 0.05) and was higher in pubescent than glabrous skin

Aroma Profiling Analysis of Peach Flowers Based on Electronic Nose Detection

Aroma profiling peach flowers can improve the landscape and ecological value of the surrounding environment. In order to preliminarily explore and screen the flower aromas of peach germplasms, the floral aroma profiles of 50 peach germplasms were analyzed by electronic nose detection. The clustering results from ten sensors showed that it was possible to identify each peach blossom aroma type. ‘Gansutao2’ was separately classified as cluster I; ‘Yuntaishanshantao’, ‘Dazhuanggansutao’, and ‘Zhouxingshantao’ as cluster II; ‘Xinjiangpantao’ and ‘Xinjianghuangrou’ as cluster III; and the remaining germplasms as cluster IV. The flower aromas of clusters I, II, and III were different from that of cluster IV and were mainly highlighted by the significant differences in the response values of the three main sensors, which were W1S (methane), W1W (hydrogen sulfide), and W5S (nitrogen oxides). The principal component analysis and significance analysis of the sensor response values showed that ‘Hua3’, ‘Hongfenjiaren’, and ‘Yuntaishanshantao’ had special flower aromas. The response values of these three varieties produced by the W1S, W1W, and W5S sensors and two aromatic sensors, W2W (aromatic components and organic sulfides) and W3S (methane-aliph), were significantly different from most of the other germplasms. The ‘Yuntaishanshantao’ response values produced by the five sensors’ were low, which showed that it had a light aroma, while the ‘Hongfenjiaren’ and ‘Hua3’ values were high, which showed that they had strong aromas. The results from this study provided basic data that could be used to screen peach germplasms with obvious floral aromas, cultivate new varieties with strong aromas, and aid the development and utilization of peach floral aroma substances