Association Analysis and Identification of ZmHKT1;5 Variation With Salt-Stress Tolerance

The high-affinity potassium transporter (HKT) genes are essential for plant salt stress tolerance. However, there were limited studies on HKTs in maize (Zea mays), and it is basically unknown whether natural sequence variations in these genes are associated with the phenotypic variability of salt tolerance. Here, the characterization of ZmHKT1;5 was reported. Under salt stress, ZmHKT1;5 expression increased strongly in salt-tolerant inbred lines, which accompanied a better-balanced Na+/K+ ratio and preferable plant growth. The association between sequence variations in ZmHKT1;5 and salt tolerance was evaluated in a diverse population comprising 54 maize varieties from different maize production regions of China. Two SNPs (A134G and A511G) in the coding region of ZmHKT1;5 were significantly associated with different salt tolerance levels in maize varieties. In addition, the favorable allele of ZmHKT1; 5 identified in salt tolerant maize varieties effectively endowed plant salt tolerance. Transgenic tobacco plants of overexpressing the favorable allele displayed enhanced tolerance to salt stress better than overexpressing the wild type ZmHKT1;5. Our research showed that ZmHKT1;5 expression could effectively enhance salt tolerance by maintaining an optimal Na+/K+ balance and increasing the antioxidant activity that keeps reactive oxygen species (ROS) at a low accumulation level. Especially, the two SNPs in ZmHKT1;5 might be related with new amino acid residues to confer salt tolerance in maize.Key Message: Two SNPs of ZmHKT1;5 related with salt tolerance were identified by association analysis. Overexpressing ZmHKT1;5 in tobaccos showed that the SNPs might enhance its ability to regulating Na+/K+ homeostasis

Experimental study on atomization characteristics of two common spiral channel pressure nozzles

Spiral channel pressure nozzles are commonly used pressure nozzles in practical workplaces. In this paper, two kinds of spiral channel type pressure nozzles, namely, spiral hole type and spiral non-porous type, the atomization characteristics and dust reduction efficiency under different spray pressures are discussed and compared. Based on the experimental method, based on the self-designed spray dust-reducing roadway experimental platform, the macro-atomization characteristics of the two nozzles, namely the flow rate, the atomization angle, the range, and the droplet size, were measured. The following conclusions were drawn: (1) The flow rates of both nozzles increase with increasing spray pressure, and the flow coefficient of the spiral non-porous nozzle is small. (2) The change of the atomization angle of the two nozzles first increases and then decreases with the increase of the spray pressure, and the atomization angle of the spiral non-porous nozzle is larger. At the same time, the range of the two nozzles gradually increases as the spray pressure increases, and the range of the spiral perforated nozzle is always larger than that of the spiral non-porous nozzle. (3) When the spray pressure is gradually increased, the droplet size of the two nozzles selected in the experiment is gradually reduced, and the droplet size of the spiral perforated nozzle is always larger than that of the spiral non-porous nozzle before 5 MPa, and then gradually Become smaller. The main reason why the droplet size decreases with the increase of the spray pressure is that the increase of the spray pressure leads to an increase in the spray speed of the water droplets, so that the water droplets are completely split when they are ejected from the nozzle, resulting in a smaller droplet size. In summary, when the spray pressure required in the actual working environment is low, the use of a spiral non-porous nozzle is more conducive to dust reduction

Evaluation of Food Safety Risk of Frozen Cooked Crayfish Based on Microbial-Related Indicators

Crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) is nutritious and delicious, but its safety always worries consumers. This study aimed to investigate the microbial safety of frozen cooked crayfish. The total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) content and pH of crayfish samples were measured to determine the end point of the shelf life. The structure and diversity of the microbial communities in the viscera and gills, muscle and shell of crayfish and the marinade were analyzed by high-throughput sequencing. The results showed that during the frozen storage of cooked crayfish, the pH of the viscera, gills and muscle decreased slowly, while the pH of the marinade and the shell increased first and then decreased. The TVB-N contents of all four samples showed an upward trend. On the 180th day, the TVB-N values of the muscle as well as the viscera and gills were 32.42 and 31.26 mg/100 g, respectively, which were higher than the accepted upper limit. The results of high-throughput sequencing showed that there were differences in the bacterial community structure of the four crayfish samples at the end of the shelf life. The decreasing order of the abundance of bacteria in these samples were marinade > viscera and gills > shell > muscle. The dominant bacterial genera in these samples were also different; Lactobacillus was dominant in the marinade. Psychrobacter and Vibrio were dominant in the viscera and gills, the dominant bacteria in the shell were Vibrio, Lactobacillus and Psychrobacter, and the dominant bacteria in the muscle were Psychrobacter and Acinetobacter. In conclusion, the microbial safety risk of the marinade and the viscera and gills in frozen cooked crayfish products was relatively high and could be reduced by combined use of various cleaning methods, adjusting the acidity of the marinade and using antibacterial agents

Compounds purified from edible fungi fight against chronic inflammation through oxidative stress regulation

Chronic inflammation is associated with various chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative disease, and cancer, which severely affect the health and quality of life of people. Oxidative stress induced by unbalanced production and elimination of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is one of the essential risk factors for chronic inflammation. Recent studies, including the studies of mushrooms, which have received considerable attention, report that the antioxidant effects of natural compounds have more advantages than synthetic antioxidants. Mushrooms have been consumed by humans as precious nourishment for 3,000 years, and so far, more than 350 types have been identified in China. Mushrooms are rich in polysaccharides, peptides, polyphenols, alkaloids, and terpenoids and are associated with several healthy biological functions, especially antioxidant properties. As such, the extracts purified from mushrooms could activate the expression of antioxidant enzymes through the Keap1/Nrf2/ARE pathway to neutralize excessive ROS and inhibit ROS-induced chronic inflammation through the NF-κB pathway. Recently, the antioxidant properties of mushrooms have been successfully applied to treating cardiovascular disease (CAD), neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes mellitus, and cancer. The present review summarizes the antioxidant properties and the mechanism of compounds purified from mushrooms, emphasizing the oxidative stress regulation of mushrooms to fight against chronic inflammation

Fire-Needle Moxibustion for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: A Meta-Analysis

Objectives. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of fire-needle moxibustion as an intervention in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (KOA). Methods. An updated meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on fire-needle moxibustion in treating KOA was conducted by searching PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Wanfang database, and the Chinese Medical Database (CNKI) since their inception through March 2016. The meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3. Results. Thirteen RCTs were identified in the systematic study which consisted of 1179 participants. Fire-needle moxibustion treatment group had a statistical significance on recovery rate as well as recovery and marked-improvement rate compared with control group. Subgroup analysis indicated that there was significant difference between fire-needle moxibustion group and control group. However, GRADE analysis indicated that the quality of evidence for all outcomes was relatively low. Only two of 13 studies reported adverse reactions (difficulty in movement and intolerance of cold). Conclusion. This meta-analysis suggests that fire-needle moxibustion is more effective than control group in symptom management of KOA. Further high quality trials should be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of fire-needle moxibustion on KOA

Elevated serum albumin-to-creatinine ratio as a protective factor on outcomes after heart transplantation

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic significance of serum albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR) in patients receiving heart transplantation of end-stage heart failure.MethodsFrom January 2015 to December 2020, a total of 460 patients who underwent heart transplantation were included in this retrospective analysis. According to the maximum Youden index, the optimal cut-off value was identified. Kaplan-Meier methods were used to describe survival rates, and multivariable analyses were conducted with Cox proportional hazard models. Meanwhile, logistic regression analysis was applied to evaluate predictors for postoperative complications. The accuracy of risk prediction was evaluated by using the concordance index (C-index) and calibration plots.ResultsThe optimal cut-off value was 37.54 for ACR. Univariable analysis indicated that recipient age, IABP, RAAS, BB, Hb, urea nitrogen, D-dimer, troponin, TG, and ACR were significant prognostic factors of overall survival (OS). Multivariate analysis showed that preoperative ACR (HR: 0.504, 95% = 0.352–0.722, P < 0.001) was still an independent prognostic factor of OS. The nomogram for predicting 1-year and 5-year OS in patients who underwent heart transplantation without ACR (C-index = 0.631) and with ACR (C-index = 0.671). Besides, preoperative ACR level was a significant independent predictor of postoperative respiratory complications, renal complications, liver injury, infection and in-hospital death. Moreover, the calibration plot showed good consistency between the predictions by the nomogram for OS and the actual outcomes.ConclusionOur research showed that ACR is a favorable prognostic indicator in patients of heart transplantation

A Regularized Generalized Popov’s Method to Solve the Hierarchical Variational Inequality Problem with Generalized Lipschitzian Mappings

In this article, we introduce a new inertial multi-step regularized generalized Popov’s extra-gradient method to solve the hierarchical variational inequality problem (HVIP). We extend the previous Lipschitzian and strongly monotone mapping to a hemicontinuous, generalized Lipschitzian and strongly monotone mapping. We also obtain a strong convergence theorem about the new Popov’s algorithm. Furthermore, we utilize some numerical experiments to highlight the feasibility and effectiveness of our method