Leaf shape influences the scaling of leaf dry mass vs. area: a test case using bamboos

Key message A highly significant and positive scaling relationship between bamboo leaf dry mass and leaf surface area was observed; leaf shape (here, represented by the quotient of leaf width and length) had a significant influence on the scaling exponent of leaf dry mass vs. area. Context The scaling of leaf dry mass vs. leaf area is important for understanding how plants effectively intercept sunlight and invest carbon to do so. However, comparatively few, if any, studies have focused on whether leaf shape influences this scaling relationship. Aims In order to explore the effects of leaf shape on the scaling relationship between leaf dry mass and area, we examined 101 species, varieties, forms, and cultivars of bamboo growing in China and identified the relationship between the scaling exponent of leaf dry mass vs. area and leaf shape. This taxon was used because its leaf shape is conserved across species and, therefore, easily quantified. Methods Ten thousand and forty-five leaves from 101 bamboo species, varieties, forms, and cultivars growing in China were collected, and leaf dry mass, the quotient of leaf width and length, leaf area, and leaf dry mass per unit area were measured. The effect of leaf shape that can be easily quantified using the quotient of leaf width and length on the relevant and ecologically important scaling exponents was explored using this data base. Results Leaf dry mass and area differed significantly across bamboo genera, and even within the same genus. However, a statistically robust log-log linear and positive scaling relationship was observed for mass and area with a 1.115 scaling exponent (95% CI = 1.107, 1.122; r(2) = 0.907). Leaf shape had a significant influence on the numerical values of the scaling exponent of leaf dry mass vs. area. When the median of the quotient of leaf width and length was below 0.125, the numerical value of the scaling exponent increased with increasing quotient of leaf width and length. When the median of the quotient of leaf width and length was above 0.125, the scaling exponent numerically decreased toward 1.0. Conclusion We show, for the first time, that a significant relationship exists between leaf shape and the numerical values of scaling exponents governing the scaling of leaf dry mass with respect to leaf area. In addition, we show that with the quotient of leaf width and length increasing mean LMA increases, which implies a negative correlation between mean LMA and the estimated exponent of leaf dry mass vs. area for the grouped data based on the sorted quotients of leaf width and length

The density of macrophages in the invasive front is inversely correlated to liver metastasis in colon cancer

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Although an abundance of evidence has indicated that tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are associated with a favorable prognosis in patients with colon cancer, it is still unknown how TAMs exert a protective effect. This study examined whether TAMs are involved in hepatic metastasis of colon cancer.</p> <p>Materials and methods</p> <p>One hundred and sixty cases of pathologically-confirmed specimens were obtained from colon carcinoma patients with TNM stage IIIB and IV between January 1997 and July 2004 at the Cancer Center of Sun Yat-Sen University. The density of macrophages in the invasive front (CD68TF_Hotspot) was scored with an immunohistochemical assay. The relationship between the CD68TF_Hotspotand the clinicopathologic parameters, the potential of hepatic metastasis, and the 5-year survival rate were analyzed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>TAMs were associated with the incidence of hepatic metastasis and the 5-year survival rate in patients with colon cancers. Both univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that the CD68TF_Hotspotwas independently prognostic of survival. A higher 5-year survival rate among patients with stage IIIB after radical resection occurred in patients with a higher macrophage infiltration in the invasive front (81.0%) than in those with a lower macrophage infiltration (48.6%). Most importantly, the CD68TF_Hotspotwas associated with both the potential of hepatic metastasis and the interval between colon resection and the occurrence of hepatic metastasis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study showed evidence that TAMs infiltrated in the invasive front are associated with improvement in both hepatic metastasis and overall survival in colon cancer, implying that TAMs have protective potential in colon cancers and might serve as a novel therapeutic target.</p

Advances in gut microbiome in metabonomics perspective: based on bibliometrics methods and visualization analysis

Background and aimsGastrointestinal microbial metabolomics is closely related to the state of the organism and has significant interaction with the pathogenesis of many diseases. Based on the publications in Web of Science Core Collection(WoSCC) from 2004 to 2022, this study conducted a bibliometric analysis of this field, aiming to understand its development trend and frontier, and provide basic information and potential points for in-depth exploration of this field.MethodsAll articles on gastrointestinal flora and metabolism published from 2004 to 2022 were collected and identified in WoCSS. CiteSpace v.6.1 and VOSviewer v.1.6.15.0 were used to calculate bibliometric indicators, including number of publications and citations, study categories, countries/institutions, authors/co-cited authors, journals/co-cited journals, co-cited references, and keywords. A map was drawn to visualize the data based on the analysis results for a more intuitive view.ResultsThere were 3811 articles in WoSCC that met our criteria. Analysis results show that the number of publications and citations in this field are increasing year by year. China is the country with the highest number of publications and USA owns the highest total link strength and citations. Chinese Acad Sci rank first for the number of institutional publications and total link strength. Journal of Proteome Research has the most publications. Nicholson, Jeremy K. is one of the most important scholars in this field. The most cited reference is “Gut flora metabolism of phosphatidylcholine promotes cardiovascular disease”. Burst detection indicates that Urine, spectroscopy, metabonomic and gut microflora are long-standing hot topics in this field, while autism spectrum disorder and omics are likely to be at the forefront of research. The study of related metabolic small molecules and the application of gastrointestinal microbiome metabolomics in various diseases are currently emerging research directions and frontier in this field.ConclusionThis study is the first to make a bibliometric analysis of the studies related to gastrointestinal microbial metabolomics and reveal the development trends and current research hotspots in this field. This can contribute to the development of the field by providing relevant scholars with valuable and effective information about the current state of the field

Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccination did not affect In vitro fertilization (IVF) / Intra-Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) cycle outcomes

Background: The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 inactivated vaccine administration on the outcomes of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles in infertile couples in China. Methods: We collected data from the CYART prospective cohort, which included couples undergoing IVF treatment from January 2021 to September 2022 at Sichuan Jinxin Xinan Women & Children's Hospital. Based on whether they received vaccination before ovarian stimulation, the couples were divided into the vaccination group and the non-vaccination group. We compared the laboratory parameters and pregnancy outcomes between the two groups. Findings: After performing propensity score matching (PSM), the analysis demonstrated similar clinical pregnancy rates, biochemical pregnancy and ongoing pregnancy rates between vaccinated and unvaccinated women. No significant disparities were found in terms of embryo development and laboratory parameters among the groups. Moreover, male vaccination had no impact on patient performance or pregnancy outcomes in assisted reproductive technology treatments. Additionally, there were no significant differences observed in the effects of vaccination on embryo development and pregnancy outcomes among couples undergoing ART. Interpretation: The findings suggest that COVID-19 vaccination did not have a significant effect on patients undergoing IVF/ICSI with fresh embryo transfer. Therefore, it is recommended that couples should receive COVID-19 vaccination as scheduled to help mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic.Comment: 26 pages, 4 figures and 5 table

Liraglutide Ameliorates β-Amyloid Deposits and Secondary Damage in the Ipsilateral Thalamus and Sensory Deficits After Focal Cerebral Infarction in Rats

Focal cerebral infarction causes β-amyloid (Aβ) deposition and secondary neuronal degeneration in the ipsilateral thalamus. Thalamus is the subcortical center of sensory, the damage of thalamus could cause sensory deficits. The present study aimed to investigate the protective effects of liraglutide, a long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP)-1 receptor agonist, on Aβ deposits and secondary damage in the ipsilateral thalamus after focal cerebral infarction. In addition, this study was conducted to investigate whether liraglutide could improve sensory function after focal cerebral infarction. Forty-two male Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to distal middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and then randomly divided into liraglutide and vehicle groups, and 14 sham-operated rats as control. At 1 h after MCAO, rats in the liraglutide and vehicle groups were subcutaneously injected with liraglutide (100 μg/kg/d) and isopyknic vehicle, respectively, once a day for 7 days. Sensory function and secondary thalamic damage were assessed using adhesive-removal test and Nissl staining and immunostaining, respectively, at 7 days after MCAO. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase 2’-deoxyuridine 5’-triphosphate nick end labeling and Western blot were used to detect neuronal apoptosis. The results showed that liraglutide improved sensory deficit compared to the controls. Liraglutide treatment significantly reduced Aβ deposition compared with the vehicle treatment. Liraglutide treatment decreased the neuronal loss, astroglial and microglial activation, and apoptosis compared with the vehicle treatment. Liraglutide significantly down-regulated the expression of Bcl-2 and up-regulated that of Bax in the ipsilateral thalamus compared with the vehicle group. These results suggest that liraglutide ameliorates the deposition of Aβ and secondary damage in the ipsilateral thalamus, potentially contributing to improve sensory deficit after focal cerebral infarction

Wuzi Yanzong Pill—Based on Network Pharmacology and In Vivo Evidence—Protects Against Spermatogenesis Disorder via the Regulation of the Apoptosis Pathway

The crisis of male infertility is an issue of human reproductive health worldwide. The Wuzi Yanzong pill (WZYZP) is a traditional Chinese medicine prescription that shows efficacy in kidney reinforcement and essence benefit to ameliorate male reproductive dysfunctions. However, the pharmacological mechanisms of the WZYZP on male infertility have not been investigated and clarified clearly. This study was designed to investigate the effects of the WZYZP on spermatogenesis disorder and explore its underlying pharmacological mechanisms. First, based on a network pharmacology study, 39 bioactive compounds and 40 targets of the WZYZP associated with spermatogenesis disorder were obtained, forming a tight compound-target network. Molecular docking tests showed tight docking of these compounds with predicted targeted proteins. The protein–protein interaction (PPI) network identified TP53, TNF, AKT1, Bcl-XL, Bcl-2, and IκBA as hub targets. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway network and pathway-target-compound network revealed that the apoptosis pathway was enriched by multiple signaling pathways and multiple targets, including the hub targets. Subsequently, the chemical characterization of WZYZP was analyzed using liquid chromatography to quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and 40 compounds in positive ion mode and 41 compounds in negative ion mode in the WZYZP were identified. Furthermore, based on the prediction of a network pharmacology study, a rat model of spermatogenesis disorder was established to evaluate the curative role and underlying mechanisms of the WZYZP. The results showed that WZYZP treatment improved rat sperm quality and attenuated serum hormone levels, reversed histopathological damage of the testis, reduced cell apoptosis in testis tissues, and ameliorated the expression of the predicted hub targets (TP53, TNF-α, AKT1, NFκB, and IκBA) and the apoptosis related proteins (Bcl-XL, Bcl-2, Bax, Caspase 3, and Caspase 9). These results indicated that the WZYZP has a protective effect on spermatogenesis disorder, suggesting that it could be an alternative choice for male infertility therapy

Pairing symmetry and properties of iron-based high temperature superconductors

Pairing symmetry is important to indentify the pairing mechanism. The analysis becomes particularly timely and important for the newly discovered iron-based multi-orbital superconductors. From group theory point of view we classified all pairing matrices (in the orbital space) that carry irreducible representations of the system. The quasiparticle gap falls into three categories: full, nodal and gapless. The nodal-gap states show conventional Volovik effect even for on-site pairing. The gapless states are odd in orbital space, have a negative superfluid density and are therefore unstable. In connection to experiments we proposed possible pairing states and implications for the pairing mechanism.Comment: 4 pages, 1 table, 2 figures, polished versio