Halorarius litoreus gen. nov., sp. nov., Halorarius halobius sp. nov., Haloglomus halophilum sp. nov., Haloglomus salinum sp. nov., and Natronomonas marina sp. nov., extremely halophilic archaea isolated from tidal flat and marine solar salt

Five novel halophilic archaeal strains, named BND22T, ZY10T, ZY41T, ZY58T, and ZY43T, were isolated from the coastal saline sediment of the intertidal zone located in Qingdao and the natural sea salt produced from Huanghua marine solar saltern, PRChina. These five strains demonstrated the typical morphology and growth characteristics of haloarchaea. The comparison of 16S rRNA gene revealed that strain BDN22T was associated with Salinirubellus salinus ZS-35-S2T (95.2% similarity), strain ZY10T was related to Halosegnis rubeus F17-44T (95.1% similarity), both strains ZY41T and ZY58T were closely related to Haloglomus irregulare F16-60T (98.1% and 98.2% similarities, respectively), and strain ZY43T was close to Natronomonas salina YPL13T (98.0% similarity). In addition to the 16S rRNA gene, the rpoB′ gene is undoubtedly another important molecular marker for the identification of halophilic archaea, and concatenated-conserved-protein phylogeny was widely used in archaeal classification in recent years. Phylogenetic and phylogenomic analyses based on rpoB′ genes and 122 concatenated archaeal protein genes showed that these haloarchaea construct three different clades and gathered together with the current members of Haloarculaceae. Strains BND22T and ZY10T formed two distinct clades separated from Salinirubellus salinus ZS-35-S2T and Halosegnis members, strains ZY41T and ZY58T clustered with Haloglomus irregulare F16-60T, and strain ZY43T gathered with the current members of Natronomonas. The ANI, DDH, and AAI values of these five strains against phylogenetic neighbours were no more than 91%, 45%, and 92%, respectively, far below the cut-off values for species delineation, supporting their placements in new taxa. Based on the phenotypic, chemotaxonomic, phylogenetic, and phylogenomic properties, these five strains represent five novel taxa of the family Haloarculaceae, Halorarius litoreus gen. nov., sp. nov. (type strain BND22T = CGMCC 1.18780T = JCM 34966T), Halorarius halobius sp. nov. (type strain ZY10T = CGMCC 1.17475T = JCM 34319T), Haloglomus halophilum sp. nov. (type strain ZY41T = CGMCC 1.17030T = JCM 34161T), Haloglomus salinum sp. nov. (type strain ZY58T = CGMCC 1.17216T = JCM 34163T), and Natronomonas marina sp. nov. (type strain ZY43T = CGMCC 1.17202T = JCM 34162T). This is the first report of description of a novel haloarchaeon isolated from a marine intertidal zone

MECHANISMS UNDERLYING ACTION OF XINMAILONG INJECTION, A TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE IN CARDIAC FUNCTION IMPROVEMENT

Background: As a bioactive composite extracted from American cockroach, Xinmailong injection (XML) is used for the treatment of congestive heart failure (CHF) in China. Clinical data has provided evidence that XML has positive inotropic properties. The objective of this study was to assess the mechanisms involved in the therapeutical effect of XML on CHF. Materials and Methods: The effects of XML on the cardiac function in isolated rat heart were measured. A Ca2+ imaging technology was used in rat cardiomyocytes (H9c2 cells) to reveal the role of XML on Ca2+ channels. Meanwhile, the effects of XML on the activities of Na+/K+ ATPase and sodium/calcium exchanger were measured. In addition, the level of reactive oxygen species and the protein expressions for the superoxide dismutase and hemeoxygenase were determined in the cardiomyocytes. Results: The results showed that XML increased the electrical impulse-induced [Ca2+]i in H9c2 cells, which was dependant on extracellular Ca2+ and was abolished by ML218-HCl (a T-type Ca2+channels antagonist) but not nimodipine (a L-type Ca2+channels antagonist). Ouabain, a Na+/K+-ATPase inhibitor, increased the electrical impulse-induced [Ca2+]i, which was significantly inhibited by XML. Moreover, XML markedly inhibited the Na+/K+ ATPase activity in H9c2 cells. In addition, XML notably reduced the production of reactive oxygen species and enhanced the protein expressions of antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase 1, superoxide dismutase 2 and hemeoxygenase 1 in H9c2 cell. Conclusion: Our findings pave the ways to the better understandings of the therapeutic effects of XML on cardiovascular system

An Updated Search of Steady TeV γ−\gamma-Ray Point Sources in Northern Hemisphere Using the Tibet Air Shower Array

Using the data taken from Tibet II High Density (HD) Array (1997 February-1999 September) and Tibet-III array (1999 November-2005 November), our previous northern sky survey for TeV $\gamma-$ray point sources has now been updated by a factor of 2.8 improved statistics. From $0.0^{\circ}$ to $60.0^{\circ}$ in declination (Dec) range, no new TeV $\gamma-$ray point sources with sufficiently high significance were identified while the well-known Crab Nebula and Mrk421 remain to be the brightest TeV $\gamma-$ray sources within the field of view of the Tibet air shower array. Based on the currently available data and at the 90% confidence level (C.L.), the flux upper limits for different power law index assumption are re-derived, which are approximately improved by 1.7 times as compared with our previous reported limits.Comment: This paper has been accepted by hepn

The LAMOST Survey of Background Quasars in the Vicinity of the Andromeda and Triangulum Galaxies -- II. Results from the Commissioning Observations and the Pilot Surveys

We present new quasars discovered in the vicinity of the Andromeda and Triangulum galaxies with the LAMOST during the 2010 and 2011 observational seasons. Quasar candidates are selected based on the available SDSS, KPNO 4 m telescope, XSTPS optical, and WISE near infrared photometric data. We present 509 new quasars discovered in a stripe of ~135 sq. deg from M31 to M33 along the Giant Stellar Stream in the 2011 pilot survey datasets, and also 17 new quasars discovered in an area of ~100 sq. deg that covers the central region and the southeastern halo of M31 in the 2010 commissioning datasets. These 526 new quasars have i magnitudes ranging from 15.5 to 20.0, redshifts from 0.1 to 3.2. They represent a significant increase of the number of identified quasars in the vicinity of M31 and M33. There are now 26, 62 and 139 known quasars in this region of the sky with i magnitudes brighter than 17.0, 17.5 and 18.0 respectively, of which 5, 20 and 75 are newly-discovered. These bright quasars provide an invaluable collection with which to probe the kinematics and chemistry of the ISM/IGM in the Local Group of galaxies. A total of 93 quasars are now known with locations within 2.5 deg of M31, of which 73 are newly discovered. Tens of quasars are now known to be located behind the Giant Stellar Stream, and hundreds behind the extended halo and its associated substructures of M31. The much enlarged sample of known quasars in the vicinity of M31 and M33 can potentially be utilized to construct a perfect astrometric reference frame to measure the minute PMs of M31 and M33, along with the PMs of substructures associated with the Local Group of galaxies. Those PMs are some of the most fundamental properties of the Local Group.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figures, AJ accepte

Genomewide association study of leprosy.

BACKGROUND: The narrow host range of Mycobacterium leprae and the fact that it is refractory to growth in culture has limited research on and the biologic understanding of leprosy. Host genetic factors are thought to influence susceptibility to infection as well as disease progression. METHODS: We performed a two-stage genomewide association study by genotyping 706 patients and 1225 controls using the Human610-Quad BeadChip (Illumina). We then tested three independent replication sets for an association between the presence of leprosy and 93 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that were most strongly associated with the disease in the genomewide association study. Together, these replication sets comprised 3254 patients and 5955 controls. We also carried out tests of heterogeneity of the associations (or lack thereof) between these 93 SNPs and disease, stratified according to clinical subtype (multibacillary vs. paucibacillary). RESULTS: We observed a significant association (P<1.00x10(-10)) between SNPs in the genes CCDC122, C13orf31, NOD2, TNFSF15, HLA-DR, and RIPK2 and a trend toward an association (P=5.10x10(-5)) with a SNP in LRRK2. The associations between the SNPs in C13orf31, LRRK2, NOD2, and RIPK2 and multibacillary leprosy were stronger than the associations between these SNPs and paucibacillary leprosy. CONCLUSIONS: Variants of genes in the NOD2-mediated signaling pathway (which regulates the innate immune response) are associated with susceptibility to infection with M. leprae