Influence Robustness of Nodes in Multiplex Networks against Attacks

Recent advances have focused mainly on the resilience of the monoplex network in attacks targeting random nodes or links, as well as the robustness of the network against cascading attacks. However, very little research has been done to investigate the robustness of nodes in multiplex networks against targeted attacks. In this paper, we first propose a new measure, MultiCoreRank, to calculate the global influence of nodes in a multiplex network. The measure models the influence propagation on the core lattice of a multiplex network after the core decomposition. Then, to study how the structural features can affect the influence robustness of nodes, we compare the dynamics of node influence on three types of multiplex networks: assortative, neutral, and disassortative, where the assortativity is measured by the correlation coefficient of the degrees of nodes across different layers. We found that assortative networks have higher resilience against attack than neutral and disassortative networks. The structure of disassortative networks tends to break down quicker under attack

QTL mapping for haploid male fertility by a segregation distortion method and fine mapping of a key QTL qhmf4 in maize

Doubled haploid (DH) technology enables rapid development of homozygous lines in maize breeding programs. However, haploid genome doubling is a bottleneck for the commercialization of DH technology and is limited by haploid male fertility (HMF). This is the first study reporting the quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis of HMF in maize. Four QTL, qhmf1, qhmf2, qhmf3, and qhmf4, controlling HMF have been identified by segregation distortion (SD) loci detection in the selected haploid population derived from ‘Yu87-1/Zheng58’. Three loci, qhmf1, qhmf2, and qhmf4, were also detected in the selected haploid population derived from ‘4F1/Zheng58’. The QTL qhmf4 showed the strongest SD in both haploid populations. Based on the sequence information of ‘Yu87-1’ and ‘Zheng58’, thirteen markers being polymorphic between the two lines were developed to saturate the qhmf4 region. A total of 8168 H1BC2 (haploid backcross generation) plants produced from ‘Yu87-1’ and ‘Zheng58’ were screened for recombinants. All the 48 recombinants were backcrossed to ‘Zheng58’ to develop H1BC3 progeny. The heterozygous H1BC3 individuals were crossed with CAU5 to induce haploids. In each H1BC3 progeny, haploids were genotyped and evaluated for anther emergence score (AES). Significant (or no significant) difference (P \u3c 0.05) between haploids with or without ‘Yu87-1’ donor segment indicated presence or absence of qhmf4 in the donor segment. The analysis of the 48 recombinants narrowed the qhmf4 locus down to an ~800 kb interval flanked by markers IND166 and IND1668

TNFα induces Ca2+ influx to accelerate extrinsic apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma cells

BACKGROUND: Tumor necrosis factor-α has been proven an effective anticancer agent in preclinical studies. However, the translation of TNFα from research to clinic has been blocked by significant systemic toxicity and limited efficacy at maximal tolerated dose, which need urgently to be solved. METHODS: The level of cytosolic Ca RESULTS: Here, we demonstrated that TNFα induced extracellular Ca CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides the evidence supporting a novel mechanism by which TNFα induces extracellular C

Novel technologies in doubled haploid line development

haploid inducer line can be transferred (DH) technology can not only shorten the breeding process but also increase genetic gain. Haploid induction and subsequent genome doubling are the two main steps required for DH technology. Haploids have been generated through the culture of immature male and female gametophytes, and through inter- and intraspecific via chromosome elimination. Here, we focus on haploidization via chromosome elimination, especially the recent advances in centromere-mediated haploidization. Once haploids have been induced, genome doubling is needed to produce DH lines. This study has proposed a new strategy to improve haploid genome doubling by combing haploids and minichromosome technology. With the progress in haploid induction and genome doubling methods, DH technology can facilitate reverse breeding, cytoplasmic male sterile (CMS) line production, gene stacking and a variety of other genetic analysis

Defect identification in adhesive structures using multi-Feature fusion convolutional neural network

The interface-debonding defects of adhesive bonding structures may cause a reduction in bonding strength, which in turn affects the bonding quality of adhesive bonding samples. Hence, defect recognition in adhesive bonding structures is particularly important. In this study, a terahertz (THz) wave was used to analyze bonded structure samples, and a multi-feature fusion convolutional neural network (CNN) was used to identify the defect waveforms. The pooling method of the squeeze-and-excitation (SE) attention mechanism was optimized, defect feature weights were adaptively assigned, and feature fusion was conducted using automatic label net-works to segment the THz waveforms in the adhesive bonding area with fine granularity waveforms as an input to the multi-channel CNN. The results revealed that the speed of the THz waveform labeling with the automatic labeling network was 10 times higher than that with traditional methods, and the defect-recognition accuracy of the defect-recognition network constructed in this study was up to 99.28%. The F1-score was 99.73%, and the lowest pre-embedded defect recognition error rate of the generalization experiment samples was 0.27%

The accuracy of soluble urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis: a meta-analysis

BackgroundNeonatal sepsis is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality in newborns. However, atypical clinical manifestations and symptoms make the early diagnosis of neonatal sepsis a challenge. Relatively high-serum soluble urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) has been implicated as a diagnostic biomarker for adult sepsis. Therefore, the meta-analysis is intended to explore the diagnostic value of suPAR for neonatal sepsis.MethodsThe PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Biological Medicine Disk, and Wanfang databases were retrieved from inception to 31 December 2022 to collect diagnostic accuracy studies about suPAR for neonatal sepsis. Two reviewers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias in the included studies using the quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies-2 (QUADAS-2) tool. Then, a meta-analysis was performed using Stata 15.0 software.ResultsA total of six articles involving eight studies were included. The results of the meta-analysis showed that the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and diagnostic odds ratio were 0.89 [95%CI (0.83–0.93)], 0.94 [95%CI (0.77–0.98)], 14 [95%CI (3.5–55.2)], 0.12 [95%CI (0.08–0.18)], and 117 [95%CI (24–567)], respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) of summary receiver operator characteristic (SROC) curves was 0.92 [95%CI (0.90–0.94)]. Sensitivity analysis confirmed the stability of the results, and publication bias was not observed. Fagan’s nomogram results demonstrated the clinical availability of the findings.ConclusionCurrent evidence suggests that suPAR has potential diagnostic value for neonatal sepsis. Owing to the limited quality of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion

Generation of Transgene-Free Maize Male Sterile Lines Using the CRISPR/Cas9 System

Male sterility (MS) provides a useful breeding tool to harness hybrid vigor for hybrid seed production. It is necessary to generate new male sterile mutant lines for the development of hybrid seed production technology. The CRISPR/Cas9 technology is well suited for targeting genomes to generate male sterile mutants. In this study, we artificially synthesized Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 gene with biased codons of maize. A CRISPR/Cas9 vector targeting the MS8 gene of maize was constructed and transformed into maize using an Agrobacterium-mediated method, and eight T0 independent transgenic lines were generated. Sequencing results showed that MS8 genes in these T0 transgenic lines were not mutated. However, we detected mutations in the MS8 gene in F1 and F2 progenies of the transgenic line H17. A potential off-target site sequence which had a single nucleotide that was different from the target was also mutated in the F2 progeny of the transgenic line H17. Mutation in the MS8 gene and the male sterile phenotype could be stably inherited by the next generation in a Mendelian fashion. Transgene-free ms8 male sterile plants were obtained by screening the F2 generation of male sterile plants, and the MS phenotype could be introduced into other elite inbred lines for hybrid production

CGRP Regulates the Age-Related Switch Between Osteoblast and Adipocyte Differentiation

Osteoporosis is a chronic age-related disease. During aging, bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) display increased adipogenic, along with decreased osteogenic, differentiation capacity. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) on the osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation potential of BMSC-derived osteoblasts. Here, we found that the level of CGRP was markedly lower in bone marrow supernatant from aged mice compared with that in young mice. In vitro experiments indicated that CGRP promoted the osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs while inhibiting their adipogenic differentiation. Compared with vehicle-treated controls, aged mice treated with CGRP showed a substantial promotion of bone formation and a reduction in fat accumulation in the bone marrow. Similarly, we found that CGRP could significantly enhance bone formation in ovariectomized (OVX) mice in vivo. Together, our results suggested that CGRP may be a key regulator of the age-related switch between osteogenesis and adipogenesis in BMSCs and may represent a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of age-related bone loss

Mapping of QTL for kernel abortion caused by in vivo haploid induction in maize (Zea mays L.)

Kernel abortion is common phenomenon in vivo haploid induction and closely linked with haploid induction rate, but little information of kernel abortion is available and its genetic basis still unclear. We used two mapping populations including 186 and 263 F2.3 family lines to analyze the different degree of kernel abortion and identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) responsible for kernel abortion during haploid induction. In total 62 putative QTL, accounting for 3.27–14.70% of the phenotypic variation in kernel abortion traits, were detected across all 10 chromosomes. Ten QTL with over 10% contribution to phenotypic variation were affecting the fifth level of endosperm abortion (EnA5th), endosperm abortion (EnA) and total abortion (TA). Co-localization among kernel abortion traits QTL was observed in both populations and among different kernel abortion types. Five overlaps were indentified in the QTL for kernel abortion traits and HIR traits. Maize chromosome bins 3.01–3.02, 3.04–3.06, 4.05–4.06, 5.03–5.04, 8.06 were QTL hotspots for three or four traits related to the kernel abortion during haploid induction. Total kernel abortion rate (TAR) and HIR showed highly significant positive correlation. These findings may help to reveal haploid induction mechanisms and improve haploid production efficiency