Transcriptome analysis of Sinorhizobium meliloti nodule bacteria in nifA mutant background

Tian Z, Zou H, Li J, et al. Transcriptome analysis of Sinorhizobium meliloti nodule bacteria in nifA mutant background. CHINESE SCIENCE BULLETIN. 2006;51(17):2079-2086.Gene expression profiles of a Sinorhizobium meliloti 1021 nifA mutant and wild type nodule bacteria were compared using whole genome microarrays. The results revealed a large scale alteration of gene expression (601 genes) in the nifA minus background. The loss of NifA altered the expression of many functional groups of genes (macromolecular metabolism, TCA cycle and respiration, nodulation and nitrogen fixation) and may lead to quite different life stages of the nodule bacteria. Upregulation of fixK and its associated genes was observed in the nifA mutant nodule bacteria. Additional quantitative real-time PCR experiments revealed that the transcript levels of fixLJ were significantly upshifted in the nifA mutant nodule bacteria. Putative NifA binding sites were predicted by a statistical method in the upstream sequences of 13 differentially regulated genes from the nifA transcriptome

Rab27b Is a Potential Predictor for Metastasis and Prognosis in Colorectal Cancer

Objective. Rab27b is reported to correlate with cancer development and progression. However, the association between Rab27b expression and the clinical characteristics of colorectal cancer (CRC) is barely investigated. Methods. One-step quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) test with 18 fresh-frozen CRC samples and immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis in 113 CRC cases were performed to explore the relationship between Rab27b expression and the clinicopathological features of CRC. Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier survival analyses were executed to evaluate the prognosis of CRC. Results. The results demonstrated that the expression levels of Rab27b mRNA and protein were significantly higher in CRC tissues than that in matched noncancerous tissues (P<0.05). Rab27b protein expression in CRC was statistically correlated with serum CEA level (P=0.004), lymph node metastasis (P=0.001), distant metastasis (P=0.009), and TNM stage (P=0.001). Cox multifactor analysis and Kaplan-Meier method suggested that higher Rab27b protein expression (P=0.041) and tumor differentiation (P=0.001) were significantly associated with the overall survival of CRC patients. Conclusions. The data indicated that higher expression of Rab27b was observed in CRC tissues and Rab27b may be identified as a useful predictor of metastasis and prognosis for CRC

Association of Maternal Diabetes Mellitus and Polymorphisms of the NKX2.5 Gene in Children with Congenital Heart Disease: A Single Centre-Based Case-Control Study

Background. Congenital heart disease (CHD) is one of the most common birth defects among newborns, accounting for a large proportion of infant mortality worldwide. However, the mechanisms remain largely undefinable. This study aimed to investigate the association of CHD in offspring of mothers with diabetes mellitus (DM) and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of NKX2.5. Methods and Results. A case-control study of 620 mothers of CHD patients and 620 mothers of healthy children admitted to Hunan Children’s Hospital from November 2017 to December 2019 was conducted. We collected the mothers’ information by questionnaire and detected children’s NKX2.5 variants with a MassARRAY system. The interaction coefficient (γ) was used to quantify the estimated gene-environment interactions. Univariate and multivariate analyses both showed that the infants had a higher risk of CHD if their mothers had a history of DM, including gestational DM (GDM) during this pregnancy (adjusted odds ratio [aOR=4.98]), GDM in previous pregnancies (aOR=4.30), and pregestational DM (PGDM) in the 3 months before this pregnancy (aOR=6.78). Polymorphisms of the NKX2.5 gene at rs11802669 (C/C vs. T/T: aOR=4.97; C/T vs. T/T: aOR=2.15) and rs2277923 (T/T vs. C/C, aOR=1.74; T/C vs. C/C, aOR=1.61) were significantly associated with the risk of CHD in offspring. In addition, significant interactions between maternal DM and NKX2.5 genetic variants at rs11802669 (aOR=8.12) and rs2277923 (aOR=17.72) affecting the development of CHD were found. Conclusions. These results suggest that maternal DM, NKX2.5 genetic variants, and their interactions are significantly associated with the risk of CHD in offspring

Image_1_Parental pre-pregnancy body mass index and risk of low birth weight in offspring: A prospective cohort study in central China.PNG

BackgroundLow birth weight (LBW) is one of the most common adverse pregnancy outcomes. Previous studies have consistently shown that maternal body mass index (BMI) status before and during pregnancy is associated with LBW. However, previous studies lacked an association between paternal BMI and the conjunction effect of a couple's BMI and LBW in the offspring. Therefore, we established a cohort of pre-pregnancy couples to prospectively assess the relationship between maternal and paternal pre-pregnancy BMI and offspring LBW, very low birth weight (VLBW), and extremely low birth weight (ELBW).MethodsA prospective cohort study was established in Central China. A total of 34,104 pregnant women with singleton pregnancies at 8–14 gestational weeks and their husbands were finally enrolled and followed to 3 months postpartum. The multivariate logistic regression and restrictive cubic spline model were used to explore the relationship between parental pre-pregnancy BMI and the risk of LBW, VLBW, and ELBW in offspring.ResultsOf the 34,104 participants, maternal pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity were associated with a higher risk of LBW (overweight: OR = 1.720, 95% CI = 1.533 ~ 1.930; obesity: OR = 1.710, 95% CI = 1.360 ~ 2.151), VLBW (overweight: OR = 2.283, 95% CI = 1.839 ~ 2.834; obesity: OR = 4.023, 95% CI = 2.855 ~ 5.670), and ELBW (overweight: OR = 3.292, 95% CI = 2.151 ~ 5.036; obesity: OR = 3.467, 95% CI = 1.481 ~ 8.115), while underweight was associated with a higher risk of LBW (OR = 1.438, 95% CI = 1.294 ~ 1.599) and a lower risk of ELBW (OR = 0.473, 95% CI = 0.236 ~ 0.946). Paternal pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity were associated with a higher risk of LBW (overweight: OR = 1.637, 95% CI = 1.501 ~ 1.784; obesity: OR = 1.454, 95% CI = 1.289 ~ 1.641) and VLBW (overweight: OR = 1.310, 95% CI = 1.097 ~ 1.564; obesity: OR = 1.320, 95% CI = 1.037 ~ 1.681), while underweight was associated with a lower risk of LBW (OR = 0.660, 95% CI = 0.519 ~ 0.839). Parents who were both excessive-weights in pre-pregnancy BMI, as well as overweight mothers and normal-weight fathers before pre-pregnancy, were more likely to have offspring with LBW, VLBW, and ELBW. Dose-response relationship existed between parental pre-pregnancy and LBW, VLBW, and ELBW, except for paternal BMI and ELBW.ConclusionsParental pre-pregnancy BMI was associated with the risk of LBW in offspring. Management of weight before pregnancy for couples might help reduce their adverse pregnancy outcomes in future intervention studies.</p