Redescription of holotypes of four Alopecosa species (Araneae, Lycosidae) from China

The holotypes of four species of Alopecosa Sundevall, 1833 described from China, A. disca Tang, Yin & Yang, 1997 (female); A. orbisaca Peng, Yin, Zhang & Kim, 1997 (female); A. wenxianensis Tang, Yin & Yang, 1997 (male), and A. xilinensis Peng, Yin, Zhang & Kim, 1997 (female), are reexamined. Detailed descriptions, illustrations, remarks, and a distribution map of the three valid species are given. Alopecosa xilinensis syn. nov. is found to be junior synonym of Alopecosa licenti (Schenkel, 1953)

Liquid gating elastomeric porous system with dynamically controllable gas/liquid transport

【Abstract】The development of membrane technology is central to fields ranging from resource harvesting to medicine, but the existing designs are unable to handle the complex sorting of multiphase substances required for many systems. Especially, the dynamic multiphase transport and separation under a steady-state applied pressure have great benefits for membrane science, but have not been realized at present. Moreover, the incorporation of precisely dynamic control with avoidance of contamination of membranes remains elusive. We show a versatile strategy for creating elastomeric microporous membrane-based systems that can finely control and dynamically modulate the sorting of a wide range of gasesandliquids underasteady-stateapplied pressure,nearlyeliminate fouling,and can be easily applied over many size scales, pressures, and environments. Experiments and theoretical calculation demonstrate the stability of our system and the tunability of the critical pressure. Dynamic transport of gas and liquid can be achieved through our gating interfacial design and the controllable pores’ deformation without changing the applied pressure. Therefore, we believe that this system will bring new opportunities for many applications, such as gas-involved chemical reactions, fuel cells, multiphase separation, multiphase flow, multiphase microreactors, colloidal particle synthesis, and sizing nano/microparticles.This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 21673197), the Young Overseas High-level Talents Introduction Plan, the 111 Project (grant no. B16029). 研究工作得到国家自然科学基金委（项目批准号：21673197）和厦门大学校长基金（项目批准号：20720170050）等资助与支持

Bibliometric analysis of research on the role of intestinal microbiota in obesity

Background Obesity is a key public health problem. The advancement of gut microbiota research sheds new light on this field. This article aims to present the research trends in global intestinal microbiota studies within the domain of obesity research. Methods Bibliographic information of the publications on intestinal microbiota and obesity was retrieved from the Scopus database, and then analyzed by using bibliometric approaches. Results A total of 3,446 references were retrieved; the data indicated a steady growth and an exponential increase in publication numbers. The references were written in 23 different languages (93.8% in English). A number of 3,056 English journal papers were included in the further analyses. Among the 940 journals, the most prolific ones were PLOS ONE, Scientific Reports, and British Journal of Nutrition. North America and Europe were the highest publication output areas. The US (995 publications) ranked first in the number of publications, followed by the China (243 publications) and France (242 publications). The publication numbers were significantly correlated with gross domestic product (GDP), human development index (HDI), and population number (PN). International collaboration analysis also shows that most of the collaborations are among developed countries. Discussion This comprehensive bibliometric study indicates that gut microbiota is a significant topic in the obesity research. The structured information may be helpful in understanding research trends, and locating research hot spots and gaps in this domain

Monitoring Prevalence and Persistence of Environmental Contamination by SARS-CoV-2 RNA in a Makeshift Hospital for Asymptomatic and Very Mild COVID-19 Patients

Objective: To investigate the details of environmental contamination status by SARS-CoV-2 in a makeshift COVID-19 hospital.Methods: Environmental samples were collected from a makeshift hospital. The extent of contamination was assessed by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) for SARS-CoV-2 RNA from various samples.Results: There was a wide range of total collected samples contaminated with SARS-CoV-2 RNA, ranging from 8.47% to 100%. Results revealed that 70.00% of sewage from the bathroom and 48.19% of air samples were positive. The highest rate of contamination was found from the no-touch surfaces (73.07%) and the lowest from frequently touched surfaces (33.40%). The most contaminated objects were the top surfaces of patient cubic partitions (100%). The median Ct values among strongly positive samples were 33.38 (IQR, 31.69–35.07) and 33.24 (IQR, 31.33–34.34) for ORF1ab and N genes, respectively. SARS-CoV-2 relic RNA can be detected on indoor surfaces for up to 20 days.Conclusion: The findings show a higher prevalence and persistence in detecting the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the makeshift COVID-19 hospital setting. The contamination mode of droplet deposition may be more common than contaminated touches

Proteomic profiling reveals the potential mechanisms and regulatory targets of sirtuin 4 in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-induced Parkinson’s mouse model

IntroductionParkinson’s disease (PD), as a common neurodegenerative disease, currently has no effective therapeutic approaches to delay or stop its progression. There is an urgent need to further define its pathogenesis and develop new therapeutic targets. An increasing number of studies have shown that members of the sirtuin (SIRT) family are differentially involved in neurodegenerative diseases, indicating their potential to serve as targets in therapeutic strategies. Mitochondrial SIRT4 possesses multiple enzymatic activities, such as deacetylase, ADP ribosyltransferase, lipoamidase, and deacylase activities, and exhibits different enzymatic activities and target substrates in different tissues and cells; thus, mitochondrial SIRT4 plays an integral role in regulating metabolism. However, the role and mechanism of SIRT4 in PD are not fully understood. This study aimed to investigate the potential mechanism and possible regulatory targets of SIRT4 in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-induced PD mice.MethodsThe expression of the SIRT4 protein in the MPTP-induced PD mouse mice or key familial Parkinson disease protein 7 knockout (DJ-1 KO) rat was compared against the control group by western blot assay. Afterwards, quantitative proteomics and bioinformatics analyses were performed to identify altered proteins in the vitro model and reveal the possible functional role of SIRT4. The most promising molecular target of SIRT4 were screened and validated by viral transfection, western blot assay and reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) assays.ResultsThe expression of the SIRT4 protein was found to be altered both in the MPTP-induced PD mouse mice and DJ-1KO rats. Following the viral transfection of SIRT4, a quantitative proteomics analysis identified 5,094 altered proteins in the vitro model, including 213 significantly upregulated proteins and 222 significantly downregulated proteins. The results from bioinformatics analyses indicated that SIRT4 mainly affected the ribosomal pathway, propionate metabolism pathway, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) signaling pathway and peroxisome pathway in cells, and we screened 25 potential molecular targets. Finally, only fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) in the PPAR signaling pathway was regulated by SIRT4 among the 25 molecules. Importantly, the alterations in FABP4 and PPARγ were verified in the MPTP-induced PD mouse model.DiscussionOur results indicated that FABP4 in the PPAR signaling pathway is the most promising molecular target of SIRT4 in an MPTP-induced mouse model and revealed the possible functional role of SIRT4. This study provides a reference for future drug development and mechanism research with SIRT4 as a target or biomarker

Figure 8 from: Liu J, Huang Z, Xu X, Yin H (2020) Redescription of types of three species of Leptonetidae Simon, 1890 from China (Arachnida, Araneae). ZooKeys 1000: 1-17. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1000.57660

Figure 8 Leptonetela unispinosa (Yin et al., 1984), comb. nov., holotype male A palpal bulb, ventral view B chelicera, retrolateral view C palp, prolateral view D palp, retrolateral view. Abbreviations: Co, conductor; E, embolus; MA, median apophysis; PL, prolateral lobe; TS, tibial spur

Redescription of types of three species of Leptonetidae Simon, 1890 from China (Arachnida, Araneae)

Three species of the genus Leptoneta Simon, 1872 deposited at Hunan Normal University, Changsha, China, are examined and redescribed. Two species are transferred from Leptoneta Simon, 1872 to Leptonetela Kratochvíl, 1978, and the following new combinations are proposed: Leptonetela trispinosa (Yin, Wang & Wang, 1984), comb. nov. (♀♂), and Leptonetela unispinosa (Yin, Wang & Wang, 1984), comb. nov. (♂). The generic placement of Leptoneta monodactyla Yin, Wang & Wang, 1984 is maintained. Detailed descriptions, illustrations, and a distribution map for all three species are provided