529 research outputs found

    All-optical broadcast and multicast technologies based on PPLN waveguide

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    Xylella fastidiosa pil-chp operon is involved in regulating key structural genes of both type I and IV pili

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    Xylella fastidiosa is the causal agent of Pierce's disease (PD) in grapevines. It has type I and type IV pili, which are both virulence factors involved in the PD-associated processes of motility, aggregation, and biofilm formation. Many questions remain as to how the two pili are regulated. We previously identified a X. fastidiosa pil-chp chemosensory-like cluster as an operon composed of genes pilG-I-J-L-chpB-C. In this study, we deleted pilG (resulting in a ∆pilG-I strain) and pilJ and discovered that both mutants (∆pilG-I and ∆pilJ) had reduced virulence after 24 weeks post-inoculation, whereas ∆chpB and ∆chpC did not. Both ∆pilG-I and ∆pilJ lost motility and were impaired in biofilm formation in rich artificial media and xylem sap. Gene expression was significantly downregulated for representative fimbrial adhesin and motility genes in ∆pilG-I, and to a lesser extent in ∆pilJ. Our data suggest that Pil, but not Chp, proteins are virulence factors, and pilG-I-J are involved in transcriptional regulation of type I and IV pili virulence genes and therefore motility and biofilm formation. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a chemotaxis-like operon involved in the regulation of key structural genes of both type I and type IV pili

    NRF2 Plays a Critical Role in Both Self and EGCG Protection against Diabetic Testicular Damage

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    Activation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2) has been found to ameliorate diabetic testicular damage (DTD) in rodents. However, it was unclear whether NRF2 is required for these approaches in DTD. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is a potent activator of NRF2 and has shown beneficial effects on multiple diabetic complications. However, the effect of EGCG has not been studied in DTD. The present study aims to explore the role of NRF2 in both self and EGCG protection against DTD. Therefore, streptozotocin-induced diabetic C57BL/6 wild type (WT) and Nrf2 knockout (KO) mice were treated in the presence or absence of EGCG, for 24 weeks. The Nrf2 KO mice exhibited more significant diabetes-induced loss in testicular weight and spermatozoa count, and increase in testicular apoptotic cell death, as compared with the WT mice. EGCG activated NRF2 expression and function, preserved testicular weight and spermatozoa count, and attenuated testicular apoptotic cell death, endoplasmic reticulum stress, inflammation, and oxidative damage in the WT diabetic mice, but not the Nrf2 KO diabetic mice. The present study demonstrated for the first time that NRF2 plays a critical role in both self and EGCG protection against DTD

    Flux regulation through glycolysis and respiration is balanced by inositol pyrophosphates in yeast

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    Although many prokaryotes have glycolysis alternatives, it\u27s considered as the only energy-generating glucose catabolic pathway in eukaryotes. Here, we managed to create a hybrid-glycolysis yeast. Subsequently, we identified an inositol pyrophosphatase encoded by OCA5 that could regulate glycolysis and respiration by adjusting 5-diphosphoinositol 1,2,3,4,6-pentakisphosphate (5-InsP7) levels. 5-InsP7 levels could regulate the expression of genes involved in glycolysis and respiration, representing a global mechanism that could sense ATP levels and regulate central carbon metabolism. The hybrid-glycolysis yeast did not produce ethanol during growth under excess glucose and could produce 2.68 g/L free fatty acids, which is the highest reported production in shake flask of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This study demonstrated the significance of hybrid-glycolysis yeast and determined Oca5 as an inositol pyrophosphatase controlling the balance between glycolysis and respiration, which may shed light on the role of inositol pyrophosphates in regulating eukaryotic metabolism

    Role of Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries in Snow Leopard Conservation

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    Abstract: The snow leopard (Panthera uncia) inhabits the rugged mountains in 12 countries of Central Asia, including the Tibetan Plateau. Due to poaching, decreased abundance of prey, and habitat degradation, it was listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation o

    Novel Biomarkers Distinguishing Active Tuberculosis from Latent Infection Identified by Gene Expression Profile of Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells

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    BACKGROUND: Humans infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) can delete the pathogen or otherwise become latent infection or active disease. However, the factors influencing the pathogen clearance and disease progression from latent infection are poorly understood. This study attempted to use a genome-wide transcriptome approach to identify immune factors associated with MTB infection and novel biomarkers that can distinguish active disease from latent infection. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using microarray analysis, we comprehensively determined the transcriptional difference in purified protein derivative (PPD) stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in 12 individuals divided into three groups: TB patients (TB), latent TB infection individuals (LTBI) and healthy controls (HC) (n = 4 per group). A transcriptional profiling of 506 differentially expressed genes could correctly group study individuals into three clusters. Moreover, 55- and 229-transcript signatures for tuberculosis infection (TB&LTBI) and active disease (TB) were identified, respectively. The validation study by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) performed in 83 individuals confirmed the expression patterns of 81% of the microarray identified genes. Decision tree analysis indicated that three genes of CXCL10, ATP10A and TLR6 could differentiate TB from LTBI subjects. Additional validation was performed to assess the diagnostic ability of the three biomarkers within 36 subjects, which yielded a sensitivity of 71% and specificity of 89%. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The transcription profiles of PBMCs induced by PPD identified distinctive gene expression patterns associated with different infectious status and provided new insights into human immune responses to MTB. Furthermore, this study indicated that a combination of CXCL10, ATP10A and TLR6 could be used as novel biomarkers for the discrimination of TB from LTBI

    Multidifferential study of identified charged hadron distributions in ZZ-tagged jets in proton-proton collisions at s=\sqrt{s}=13 TeV

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    Jet fragmentation functions are measured for the first time in proton-proton collisions for charged pions, kaons, and protons within jets recoiling against a ZZ boson. The charged-hadron distributions are studied longitudinally and transversely to the jet direction for jets with transverse momentum 20 <pT<100< p_{\textrm{T}} < 100 GeV and in the pseudorapidity range 2.5<η<42.5 < \eta < 4. The data sample was collected with the LHCb experiment at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.64 fb−1^{-1}. Triple differential distributions as a function of the hadron longitudinal momentum fraction, hadron transverse momentum, and jet transverse momentum are also measured for the first time. This helps constrain transverse-momentum-dependent fragmentation functions. Differences in the shapes and magnitudes of the measured distributions for the different hadron species provide insights into the hadronization process for jets predominantly initiated by light quarks.Comment: All figures and tables, along with machine-readable versions and any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/p/LHCb-PAPER-2022-013.html (LHCb public pages

    Study of the B−→Λc+Λˉc−K−B^{-} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} \bar{\Lambda}_{c}^{-} K^{-} decay

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    The decay B−→Λc+Λˉc−K−B^{-} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} \bar{\Lambda}_{c}^{-} K^{-} is studied in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of s=13\sqrt{s}=13 TeV using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 fb−1\mathrm{fb}^{-1} collected by the LHCb experiment. In the Λc+K−\Lambda_{c}^+ K^{-} system, the Ξc(2930)0\Xi_{c}(2930)^{0} state observed at the BaBar and Belle experiments is resolved into two narrower states, Ξc(2923)0\Xi_{c}(2923)^{0} and Ξc(2939)0\Xi_{c}(2939)^{0}, whose masses and widths are measured to be m(Ξc(2923)0)=2924.5±0.4±1.1 MeV,m(Ξc(2939)0)=2938.5±0.9±2.3 MeV,Γ(Ξc(2923)0)=0004.8±0.9±1.5 MeV,Γ(Ξc(2939)0)=0011.0±1.9±7.5 MeV, m(\Xi_{c}(2923)^{0}) = 2924.5 \pm 0.4 \pm 1.1 \,\mathrm{MeV}, \\ m(\Xi_{c}(2939)^{0}) = 2938.5 \pm 0.9 \pm 2.3 \,\mathrm{MeV}, \\ \Gamma(\Xi_{c}(2923)^{0}) = \phantom{000}4.8 \pm 0.9 \pm 1.5 \,\mathrm{MeV},\\ \Gamma(\Xi_{c}(2939)^{0}) = \phantom{00}11.0 \pm 1.9 \pm 7.5 \,\mathrm{MeV}, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic. The results are consistent with a previous LHCb measurement using a prompt Λc+K−\Lambda_{c}^{+} K^{-} sample. Evidence of a new Ξc(2880)0\Xi_{c}(2880)^{0} state is found with a local significance of 3.8 σ3.8\,\sigma, whose mass and width are measured to be 2881.8±3.1±8.5 MeV2881.8 \pm 3.1 \pm 8.5\,\mathrm{MeV} and 12.4±5.3±5.8 MeV12.4 \pm 5.3 \pm 5.8 \,\mathrm{MeV}, respectively. In addition, evidence of a new decay mode Ξc(2790)0→Λc+K−\Xi_{c}(2790)^{0} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} K^{-} is found with a significance of 3.7 σ3.7\,\sigma. The relative branching fraction of B−→Λc+Λˉc−K−B^{-} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} \bar{\Lambda}_{c}^{-} K^{-} with respect to the B−→D+D−K−B^{-} \to D^{+} D^{-} K^{-} decay is measured to be 2.36±0.11±0.22±0.252.36 \pm 0.11 \pm 0.22 \pm 0.25, where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second systematic and the third originates from the branching fractions of charm hadron decays.Comment: All figures and tables, along with any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/p/LHCb-PAPER-2022-028.html (LHCb public pages
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