The dampening effect of employees’ future orientation on cyberloafing behaviors: The mediating role of self-control

Previous studies on reducing employees’ cyberloafing behaviors have primarily examined the external control factors but seldomly taken individual internal subjective factors into consideration. Future orientation, an important individual factor, is defined as the extent to which one plans for future time and considers future consequences of one’s current behavior. To explore further whether and how employees’ future orientation can dampen their cyberloafing behaviors, two studies were conducted to examine the relationship between employees’ future orientation and cyberloafing behaviors. The mediation effect of employees’ objective and subjective self-control between them was also examined. In Study 1, a set of questionnaires was completed, and the results revealed that the relationship between employees’ future orientation and cyberloafing behaviors was negative, and objective self-control mediated the relationship. Next, we conducted a priming experiment (Study 2) to examine the causal relationship and psychological mechanism between employees’ future orientation and cyberloafing behaviors. The results demonstrated that employees’ future-orientation dampened their attitudes and intentions to engage in cyberloafing, and subjective self-control mediated this dampening effect. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are also discussed

A putative mitochondrial iron transporter MrsA in Aspergillus fumigatus plays important roles in azole-, oxidative stress responses and virulence

Iron is an essential nutrient and enzyme co-factor required for a wide range of cellular processes, especially for the function of mitochondria. For the opportunistic fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus, the ability to obtain iron is required for growth and virulence during the infection process. However, knowledge of how mitochondria are involved in iron regulation is still limited. Here, we show that a mitochondrial iron transporter, MrsA, a homolog of yeast Mrs4p, is critical for adaptation to iron-limited or iron-excess conditions in A. fumigatus. Deletion of mrsA leads to disruption of iron homeostasis with a decreased sreA expression, resulted in activated reductive iron assimilation (RIA) and siderophore-mediated iron acquisition (SIA). Furthermore, deletion of mrsA induces hypersusceptibility to azole and oxidative stresses. An assay for cellular ROS content in ΔmrsA combined with rescue from the mrsA-defective phenotype by the antioxidant reagent L-ascorbic acid indicates that the increased sensitivity of ΔmrsA to the azole itraconazole and to oxidative stress is mainly the result of abnormal ROS accumulation. Moreover, site-directed mutation experiments verified that three conserved histidine residues related to iron transport in MrsA are required for responses to oxidative and azole stresses. Importantly, ΔmrsA causes significant attenuation of virulence in an immunocompromised murine model of aspergillosis. Collectively, our results show that the putative mitochondrial iron transporter MrsA plays important roles in azole- and oxidative-stress responses and virulence by regulating the balance of cellular iron in A. fumigatus

The heat shock factor gene family in Salix suchowensis: a genome-wide survey and expression profiling during development and abiotic stresses

Heat shock transcription factors (Hsfs), which act as important transcriptional regulatory proteins, play crucial roles in plant developmental processes and stress responses. Recently, the genome of the shrub willow Salix suchowensis was fully sequenced. In this study, a total of 27 nonredundant Hsf genes were identified from the S. suchowensis genome. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the members of the SsuHsf family can be divided into three groups (class A, B, and C) based on their structural characteristics. Promoter analysis indicated that the SsuHsfs promoters included various cis-acting elements related to hormone and/or stress responses. Furthermore, the expression profiles of 27 SsuHsfs were analyzed in different tissues and under various stresses (heat, drought, salt, and ABA treatment) using RT-PCR. The results demonstrated that the SsuHsfs were involved in abiotic stress responses. Our results contribute to a better understanding of the complexity of the SsuHsf gene family, and will facilitate functional characterization in future studies

Peach MYB7 activates transcription of the proanthocyanidin pathway gene encoding leucoanthocyanidin reductase, but not anthocyanidin reductase

Proanthocyanidins (PAs) are a group of natural phenolic compounds that have a great effect on both flavour and nutritious value of fruit. It has been shown that PA synthesis is regulated by R2R3-MYB transcription factors (TFs) via activation of PA-specific pathway genes encoding leucoanthocyanidin reductase (LAR) and anthocyanidin reductase (ANR). Here, we report the isolation and characterization of a MYB gene designated PpMYB7 in peach. The peach PpMYB7 represents a new group of R2R3-MYB genes regulating PA synthesis in plants. It is able to activate transcription of PpLAR1 but not PpANR, and has a broader selection of potential bHLH partners compared with PpMYBPA1. Transcription of PpMYB7 can be activated by the peach basic leucine-zipper 5 TF (PpbZIP5) via response to ABA. Our study suggests a transcriptional network regulating PA synthesis in peach, with the results aiding the understanding of the functional divergence between R2R3-MYB TFs in plants

Genome-wide identification of microRNAs and their targets in wild type and phyB mutant provides a key link between microRNAs and the phyB-mediated light signaling pathway in rice

Phytochrome B (phyB), a member of the phytochrome family in rice, plays important roles in regulating a range of developmental processes and stress responses. However, little information about the mechanisms involved in the phyB-mediated light signaling pathway has been reported in rice. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) also perform important roles in plant development and stress responses. Thus, it is intriguing to explore the role of miRNAs in the phyB-mediated light signaling pathway in rice. In this study, comparative high-throughput sequencing and degradome analysis were used to identify candidate miRNAs and their targets that participate in the phyB-mediated light signaling pathway. A total of 720 known miRNAs, 704 novel miRNAs and 1,957 target genes were identified from the fourth leaves of wild-type (WT) and phyB mutant rice at the five-leaf stage. Among them, 135 miRNAs showed differential expression, suggesting that the expression of these miRNAs is directly or indirectly under the control of phyB. In addition, 32 out of the 135 differentially expressed miRNAs were found to slice 70 genes in the rice genome. Analysis of these target genes showed that members of various transcription factor families constituted the largest proportion, indicating miRNAs are probably involved in the phyB-mediated light signaling pathway mainly by regulating the expression of transcription factors. Our results provide new clues for functional characterization of miRNAs in the phyB-mediated light signaling pathway, which should be helpful in comprehensively uncovering the molecular mechanisms of phytochrome-mediated photomorphogenesis and stress responses in plants

Dickkopf-3 contributes to the regulation of anti-tumor immune responses by mesenchymal stem cells.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are known to limit immune responses in vivo by multiple soluble factors. Dickkopf-3 (DKK3), a secreted glycoprotein, has recently been identified as a novel immune modulator. Since DKK3 has been reported to be produced by MSCs we investigated whether DKK3 contributes to the immune suppression of anti-tumor responses by MSCs. Whereas wild-type MSCs inhibited immune responses against two different transplantation tumors, DKK3-deficient MSCs did not affect the rejection process. Increased CD8+ T cell and reduced M2-type macrophages infiltration was observed in tumors inoculated together with DKK3-deficient MSCs. Thus, DKK3 could alter the composition of the tumor stroma, thereby supporting the MSCs-mediated suppression of immune responses against these tumor transplants

Proteomic analysis and candidate allergenic proteins in Populus deltoides CL. ‘2KEN8’ mature pollen

Proteomic analysis was used to generate a map of Populus deltoides CL. ‘2KEN8’ mature pollen proteins. By applying 2-D electrophoresis, we resolved 403 protein spots from mature pollen. Using the matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time time-of-flight/time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry method, we identified 178 distinct proteins from 218 protein spots expressed in mature pollen. Moreover, out of these, 28 proteins were identified as putative allergens. The expression patterns of these putative allergen genes indicate that several of these genes are highly expressed in pollen. In addition, the members of profilin allergen family were analyzed and their expression patterns were compared with their homologous genes in Arabidopsis and rice. Knowledge of these identified allergens has the potential to improve specific diagnosis and allergen immunotherapy treatment for patients with poplar pollen allergy

Neurons in the barrel cortex turn into processing whisker and odor signals: a cellular mechanism for the storage and retrieval of associative signals

Associative learning and memory are essential to logical thinking and cognition. How the neurons are recruited as associative memory cells to encode multiple input signals for their associated storage and distinguishable retrieval remains unclear. We studied this issue in the barrel cortex by in vivo two-photon calcium imaging, electrophysiology and neural tracing in our mouse model that the simultaneous whisker and olfaction stimulations led to odorant-induced whisker motion. After this cross-modal reflex arose, the barrel and piriform cortices connected. More than 40% of barrel cortical neurons became to encode odor signal alongside whisker signal. Some of these neurons expressed distinct activity patterns in response to acquired odor signal and innate whisker signal, and others encoded similar pattern in response to these signals. In the meantime, certain barrel cortical astrocytes encoded odorant and whisker signals. After associative learning, the neurons and astrocytes in the sensory cortices are able to store the newly learnt signal (cross-modal memory) besides the innate signal (native-modal memory). Such associative memory cells distinguish the differences of these signals by programming different codes and signify the historical associations of these signals by similar codes in information retrievals

Scanning ion conductance microscopy: A nanotechnology for biological studies in live cells

Scanning ion conductance microscope (SICM), which enables high-resolution imaging of cell surface topography, has been developed for over two decades. However, only recently, a unique scanning mode is increasingly used in biological studies to allow SICM to detect the surface of live cells. More recently, in combination with confocal microscopy and patch-clamp electrophysiological techniques, SICM allows investigators to localize proteins or ion channels in a specific nanostructure at the cell surface. This article will briefly review SICM nanotechnique and summarize the role of SICM in biological studies

Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli in Plateau Pika (Ochotona curzoniae) on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are an emerging group of zoonotic pathogens. Ruminants are the natural reservoir of STEC. In this study we determined the prevalence and characteristics of the STEC in plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China. A total of 1116 pika samples, including 294 intestinal contents samples, 317 fecal samples, and 505 intestinal contents samples, were collected from May to August in the years 2012, 2013 and 2015, respectively. Twenty-one samples (1.88%) yielded at least one STEC isolate; in total, 22 STEC isolates were recovered. Thirteen different O serogroups and 14 serotypes were identified. One stx1 subtype (stx1a) and three stx2 subtypes (stx2a, stx2b and stx2d) were present in the STEC isolates. Fifteen, fourteen and three STEC isolates harbored the virulence genes ehxA, subA, and astA, respectively. Adherence-associated genes iha and saa were respectively present in 72.73% and 68.18% of the STEC isolates. Twenty antibiotics were active against all the STEC isolates; all strains were resistant to penicillin G, and some to cephalothin or streptomycin. The 22 STEC isolates were divided into 16 PFGE patterns and 12 sequence types. Plateau pikas may play a role in the ongoing circulation of STEC in the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. This study provides the first report on STEC in plateau pikas and new information about STEC reservoirs in wildlife. Based on the serotypes, virulence gene profiles and MLST analysis, the majority of these pika STECs may pose a low public health risk