Structural and physicochemical effects on the starch quality of the high-quality wheat genotype caused by delayed sowing

BackgroundBread wheat is one of the most important food crops associated with ensuring food security and human nutritional health. The starch quality is an important index of high-quality wheat. It is affected by a complex series of factors; among which, suitable sowing time is a key factor.Aim and methodsTo analyze the integrative effects of sowing time on the starch quality of high-quality wheat, in the present study, we selected a high-quality bread wheat cultivar Jinan 17 and investigated the effect of different sowing times on the starch properties and the related genes by analyzing X-ray diffraction patterns, apparent amylose content, thermal properties, pasting properties, in vitro starch digestibility, and qRT-PCR. Meanwhile, we also investigated the agronomic and yield performance that may be associated with the starch properties.ResultsDelayed sowing had little effect on starch crystalline morphology, but there was a tendency to reduce the formation of crystals within wheat starch granules: (1) delayed sowing for 15 days altered the thermal properties of starch, including onset, peak and termination temperatures, and enthalpy changes; (2) delayed sowing for 30 days changed the thermal characteristics of starch relatively insignificant; (3) significant differences in pasting characteristics occurred: peak viscosity and hold-through viscosity increased, while final viscosity, breakdown viscosity, and setback viscosity tended to increase and then decrease, suggesting that delayed sowing caused changes in the surface of the starch granules resulting in a decrease in digestibility. Analysis of related genes showed that several key enzymes in starch biosynthesis were significantly affected by delayed sowing, leading to a reduction in apparent straight-chain starch content. In addition to starch properties, thousand-kernel weight also increased under delayed sowing conditions compared with normal sowing.ConclusionThe impact of delayed sowing on starch quality is multifaceted and complex, from the fine structure, and functional properties of the starch to the regulation of key gene expression. Our study holds significant practical value for optimizing wheat planting management and maximizing the potential in both quality and yield

Unraveling the Dynamic Relationship between Neighborhood Deprivation and Walkability over Time: A Machine Learning Approach

Creating a walkable environment is an essential step toward the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Nevertheless, not all people can enjoy a walkable environment, and neighborhoods with different socioeconomic status are found to vary greatly with walkability. Former studies have typically unraveled the relationship between neighborhood deprivation and walkability from a temporally static perspective and the produced estimations to a point-in-time snapshot were believed to incorporate great uncertainties. The ways in which neighborhood walkability changes over time in association with deprivation remain unclear. Using the case of the Hangzhou metropolitan area, we first measured the neighborhood walkability from 2016 to 2018 by calculating a set of revised walk scores. Further, we applied a machine learning algorithm, the kernel-based regularized least squares regression in particular, to unravel how neighborhood walkability changes in relation to deprivation over time. The results not only capture the nonlinearity in the relationship between neighborhood deprivation and walkability over time, but also highlight the marginal effects of each neighborhood deprivation indicator. Additionally, comparisons of the outputs between the machine learning algorithm and OLS regression illustrated that the machine learning approach did tell a different story and should contribute to remedying the contradictory conclusions in earlier studies. This paper is believed to renew the understanding of social inequalities in walkability by bringing the significance of temporal dynamics and structural interdependences to the fore

Investigation of obesity and its related factors among Chinese medical staff: a cross-sectional pilot study

Abstract Background Many studies have covered the prevalence of obesity in different populations. However, studies on the prevalence and predictors of obesity among medical staff are lacking. The aim of our study is to investigate the prevalence of obesity among medical staff and to identify the related predictors. Methods Using a snowballing recruitment strategy in the form of an electronic questionnaire, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1201 medical staff from cooperative hospitals between January and March 2022. We designed a questionnaire to investigate the participants’ demographic, lifestyle, diet, physical activity, and work status. Results The overall prevalence of obesity was 8.5%, with males (13.7%) having a greater incidence than females (5.7%) (p  3/week (OR, 2.50; 95% CI 1.02–6.15, p = 0.046), and working a night shift > 1/week (OR, 2.17; 95% CI 1.02–4.61, p = 0.043) were independent predictive factors for obesity in men. For women, having midnight snack having midnight snack (OR, 2.93;95% CI 1.24–6.96, p = 0.015), good sleep quality (OR, 4.47; 95% CI 1.10–21.70, p = 0.038), and working a night shift > 1/week (OR, 3.62; 95% CI 1.73–7.57, p = 0.001) were independently associated with obesity. Conclusions Obesity presented a low prevalence among medical staff. Alcohol drinking, drinking sugar-sweetened beverages > 3/week, and night shift > 1/week predicted a higher risk of obesity in males. In females, having midnight snack, good sleep quality, and night shift > 1/week were independently associated with obesity. Level of evidence: V, descriptive study

Downregulation of circ-ZNF609 Promotes Heart Repair by Modulating RNA N6-Methyladenosine-Modified Yap Expression

Circular RNAs take crucial roles in several pathophysiological processes. The regulatory role and its underlying mechanisms of circ-ZNF609 in the heart remains largely unknown. Here, we report that circ-ZNF609 is upregulated during myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) remodeling. Knockdown of circ-ZNF609 protects against acute I/R injury and attenuates left ventricle dysfunction after I/R remodeling in vivo. In vitro, circ-ZNF609 regulates cardiomyocyte survival and proliferation via modulating the crosstalk between Hippo-YAP and Akt signaling. Mechanically, N6-methyladenosine-modification is involved in the regulatory role of circ-ZNF609 on YAP. An in-depth study indicates that knockdown of circ-ZNF609 decreases the expression of YTHDF3 and further fine-tuned the accessibility of Yap mRNA to YTHDF1 and YTHDF2 to regulate YAP expression. circ-ZNF609 knockdown represents a promising therapeutic strategy to combat the pathological process of myocardial I/R injury

Affinity Purification of Binding miRNAs for Messenger RNA Fused with a Common Tag

Prediction of microRNA–mRNA interaction typically relies on bioinformatic methods, but these methods only suggest the possibility of microRNA binding and may miss important interactions as well as falsely predict others. A major obstacle to the miRNA research has been the lack of experimental procedures for the identification of miRNA–mRNA interactions. Recently, a few studies have attempted to explore experimental methods to isolate and identify miRNA targets or miRNAs targeting a single gene. Here, we developed an more convenient experimental approach for the isolation and identification of miRNAs targeting a single gene by applying short biotinylated DNA anti-sense oligonucleotides mix to enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) mRNA which was fused to target gene mRNA. This method does not require a design of different anti-sense oligonucleotides to any mRNA. This is a simple and an efficient method to potentially identify miRNAs targeting specific gene mRNA combined with chip screen