Identification of BC005512 as a DNA Damage Responsive Murine Endogenous Retrovirus of GLN Family Involved in Cell Growth Regulation

Genotoxicity assessment is of great significance in drug safety evaluation, and microarray is a useful tool widely used to identify genotoxic stress responsive genes. In the present work, by using oligonucleotide microarray in an in vivo model, we identified an unknown gene BC005512 (abbreviated as BC, official full name: cDNA sequence BC005512), whose expression in mouse liver was specifically induced by seven well-known genotoxins (GTXs), but not by non-genotoxins (NGTXs). Bioinformatics revealed that BC was a member of the GLN family of murine endogenous retrovirus (ERV). However, the relationship to genotoxicity and the cellular function of GLN are largely unknown. Using NIH/3T3 cells as an in vitro model system and quantitative real-time PCR, BC expression was specifically induced by another seven GTXs, covering diverse genotoxicity mechanisms. Additionally, dose-response and linear regression analysis showed that expression level of BC in NIH/3T3 cells strongly correlated with DNA damage, measured using the alkaline comet assay,. While in p53 deficient L5178Y cells, GTXs could not induce BC expression. Further functional studies using RNA interference revealed that down-regulation of BC expression induced G1/S phase arrest, inhibited cell proliferation and thus suppressed cell growth in NIH/3T3 cells. Together, our results provide the first evidence that BC005512, a member from GLN family of murine ERV, was responsive to DNA damage and involved in cell growth regulation. These findings could be of great value in genotoxicity predictions and contribute to a deeper understanding of GLN biological functions

Aggregation-Induced Emission (AIE), Life and Health

Light has profoundly impacted modern medicine and healthcare, with numerous luminescent agents and imaging techniques currently being used to assess health and treat diseases. As an emerging concept in luminescence, aggregation-induced emission (AIE) has shown great potential in biological applications due to its advantages in terms of brightness, biocompatibility, photostability, and positive correlation with concentration. This review provides a comprehensive summary of AIE luminogens applied in imaging of biological structure and dynamic physiological processes, disease diagnosis and treatment, and detection and monitoring of specific analytes, followed by representative works. Discussions on critical issues and perspectives on future directions are also included. This review aims to stimulate the interest of researchers from different fields, including chemistry, biology, materials science, medicine, etc., thus promoting the development of AIE in the fields of life and health

Electrical property modulation of Au/Ba0.6Sr0.4TiO3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 structure by continuous composition spread Mn doping

International audienceComposition spread Mn-doped Ba 0.6 Sr 0.4 Ti 1-x Mn x O 3 (BSTMx, 0 ≤x ≤ 0.05) thin films were prepared on La 0.7 Sr 0.3 MnO 3 /SrTiO 3 (LSMO/STO) layer by combinatorial pulsed laser deposition. When x is less than 3.3%, the BSTMx films are single phase according to X-ray diffraction data, and the Au/BSTMx/LSMO structure presents asymmetric transport properties. The asymmetry of the transport property gets weak with increasing Mn doping concentration. The reverse-bias current density of the Au/BSTMx/LSMO structure remains at a low value of 10 − 7 A/cm 2 , and the forward-bias current density reduces rapidly with the ascending doping content (x ≤ 1.8%). Further increasing the Mn content, the differences between the positive and reverse current densities become smaller, and almost vanish when the Mn content is greater than 3.8%, indicating the disappearance of the asymmetry of the transport property. The effects of the LSMO electrode, Au/BSTMx Schottky junction, BSTMx thin film, and BSTMx/LSMO interface on the whole electrical transport properties are discussed by virtue of the experimental and fitted impedance spectrums. Our results are helpful for insight into the doping mechanisms in perovskite oxides

Promoting Intersystem Crossing of Fluorescent Molecule via Single Functional Group Modification

International audiencePure light-atoms organic phosphorescent molecules have been under scientific scrutiny because they are inexpensive, flexible, and environment friendly. The development of such materials, however, faces a bottleneck problem of intrinsically small spin-orbit couplings (SOC), which can be addressed by seeking a proper balance between intersystem crossing (ISC) and fluorescence rates. Using N-substituted naphthalimides (NNI) as the prototype molecule, we applied chemical modifications with several electrophilic and nucleophilic functional groups, to approach the goal. The selected electron donating groups actively restrain the fluorescence, enabling an efficient ISC to the triplet manifold. Electron withdrawing groups do not change the luminescent properties of the parent species. The changes in ISC and fluorescence rates are related to the nature of the lowest singlet state, which changes from localized excitation into charge-transfer excitation. This finding opens an alternative strategy for designing pure light-atoms organic phosphorescent molecules for emerging luminescent materials applications

The Impact of Tai Chi on Motor Function, Balance, and Quality of Life in Parkinson’s Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective. Parkinson’s disease adversely affects function and quality of life, leading to increased mortality. The practice of Tai Chi has been associated with multifaceted improvements in health-related fitness. Considering the limited number of clinical studies included in previous reviews, inconsistent methodological quality, and inconclusive results, this meta-analysis aims to assess the effects of Tai Chi in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Method. Four English language databases and four Chinese databases were systematically searched for existing randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of Tai Chi in Parkinson’s disease from database inception through August 1, 2020. Methodological quality was appraised with the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. A meta-analysis of comparative effects was performed using the Review Manager v.5.3 software. Results. Seventeen published RCTs totaling 951 subjects were included. Results showed that Tai Chi has a statistically significant effect on the outcomes of gait velocity, unified Parkinson’s disease rating scale (UPDRS) motor score, activities-specific balance confidence (ABC) score, and Berg Balance Scale (BBS). The effects on the Timed Up and Go Test (TUGT) and Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39) were not statistically significant. Conclusions. This systematic review and meta-analysis of Parkinson’s disease and Tai Chi suggests Tai Chi is a relatively safe activity that can result in gains in general motor function and improve bradykinesia and balance. It has no statistically significant advantage for quality of life and functional mobility. Further randomized trials with larger sample sizes and of higher methodological quality are needed to confirm these results and to assess the feasibility of Tai Chi intervention for potential different clinical applications

A Duplex PCR Assay for Rapid Detection of Phytophthora nicotianae and Thielaviopsis basicola

A duplex PCR method was developed for simultaneous detection and identification of tobacco root rot pathogens Phytophthora nicotianae and Thielaviopsis basicola. The specific primers for P. nicotianae were developed based on its internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of ribosomal gene, ras gene and hgd gene, while the specific primers for T. basicola were designed based on its ITS regions and β-tubulin gene. The specificity of the primers was determined using isolates of P. nicotianae, T. basicola and control samples. The results showed that the target pathogens could be detected from diseased tobacco plants by a combination of the specific primers. The sensitivity limitation was 100 fg/μl of pure genomic DNA of the pathogens. This new assay can be applied to screen out target pathogens rapidly and reliably in one PCR and will be an important tool for the identification and precise early prediction of these two destructive diseases of tobacco

Review of the Intelligent Sensor‐Memory‐Control Fusion Systems

Abstract The ability to sense light, heat, and touch is vital for human beings, underpinning the interaction between humans and the environment. To mimic the biological perception system, the sensory system converts external light, heat, and mechanical inputs into electrical signals, then processing and storing the data in digital hardware before providing feedback. However, modern digital sensing‐processing systems based on the von Neumann architecture are facing significant challenges in power consumption and latency due to the unprecedented increase in data size and algorithm complexity. A promising solution is to integrate sensors, memory, and control. Here the “state‐of‐the‐art” fusion systems involved in the sensing of visual, olfactory, tactile, visual signals, and control is reviewed. The challenges in high performance and reliability are also discussed

Characterization of atomic defects on the photoluminescence in two-dimensional materials using transmission electron microscope

Two‐dimensional material (2D) that possesses atomic thin geometry and remarkable properties is a star material for the fundamental researches and advanced applications. Defects in 2D materials are critical and fundamental to understand the chemical, physical, and optical properties. Photoluminescence arises in 2D materials owing to various physical phenomena including activator/dopant‐induced luminescence and defect‐related emissions, and so forth. With the advanced transmission electron microscopy (TEM) technologies, such as aberration correction and low voltage technologies, the morphology, chemical compositions and electronic structures of defects in 2D material could be directly characterized at the atomic scale. In this review, we introduce the applications of state‐of‐the‐art TEM technologies on the studies of the role of atomic defects in the photoluminescence characteristics in 2D material. The challenges in spatial and time resolution are also discussed. It is proved that TEM is a powerful tool to pinpoint the relationship between the defects and the photoluminescence characteristics