Soil bacterial community in a photovoltaic system adopted different survival strategies to cope with small-scale light stress under different vegetation restoration modes

Solar photovoltaic (PV) power generation is a major carbon reduction technology that is rapidly developing worldwide. However, the impact of PV plant construction on subsurface microecosystems is currently understudied. We conducted a systematic investigation into the effects of small-scale light stress caused by shading of PV panels and sampling depth on the composition, diversity, survival strategy, and key driving factors of soil bacterial communities (SBCs) under two vegetation restoration modes, i.e., Euryops pectinatus (EP) and Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum (LC). The study revealed that light stress had a greater impact on rare species with relative abundances below 0.01% than on high-abundance species, regardless of the vegetation restoration pattern. Additionally, PV shadowing increased SBCs’ biomass by 20–30% but had varying negative effects on the numbers of Operational Taxonomic Unit (OTU), Shannon diversity, abundance-based coverage estimator (ACE), and Chao1 richness index. Co-occurrence and correlation network analysis revealed that symbiotic relationships dominated the key SBCs in the LC sample plots, with Chloroflexi and Actinobacteriota being the most ecologically important. In contrast, competitive relationships were significantly increased in the EP sample plots, with Actinobacteriota having the most ecological importance. In the EP sample plot, SBCs were found to be more tightly linked and had more stable ecological networks. This suggests that EP is more conducive to the stability and health of underground ecosystems in vulnerable areas when compared with LC. These findings offer new insights into the effects of small-scale light stress on subsurface microorganisms under different vegetation restoration patterns. Moreover, they may provide a reference for optimizing ecological restoration patterns in fragile areas

Buyang Huanwu Decoction Ameliorates Poststroke Depression via Promoting Neurotrophic Pathway Mediated Neuroprotection and Neurogenesis

Objective. The aim of the present research is to investigate the therapeutic effect of Buyang Huanwu Decoction (BHD) in poststroke depression (PSD) animal model and illustrate its underlying mechanism via promoting neurotrophic pathway mediated neuroprotection and neurogenesis. Methods. To induce PSD rat model, isolation housed rats that received middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) surgery successively suffered from chronic mild stress (CMS) treatment for consecutive twenty-one days. Meanwhile, rats were correspondingly given vehicle, BHD, and fluoxetine. Then, neurologic function was scored and depressive-like behaviors were assessed by sucrose preference test, locomotor activity, novelty-suppressed feeding test, and forced swim test. Thereafter, the neuroprotection and neurogenesis related molecular markers and signaling were detected. Results. We firstly observed a significant neurological function recovery and antidepressants effect of BHD after MCAO together with CMS treatment. Our study also found that treatment with BHD and fluoxetine can significantly rescue neurons from apoptosis and promote neurogenesis in the CA3 and DG regions in the hippocampus. Notably, BHD and fluoxetine treatment can activate BDNF/ERK/CREB signaling. Conclusion. The results suggest that BHD is a promising candidate for treating PSD. Its curative effects can be attributed to neurotrophic pathway mediated neuroprotection and neurogenesis

Effect of task complexity on intelligence and neural efficiency in children: an event-related potential study

The present study investigates the effects of task complexity, intelligence and neural efficiency on children's performance on an Elementary Cognitive Task. Twenty-three children were divided into two groups on the basis of their Raven Progressive Matrix scores and were then asked to complete a choice reaction task with two test conditions. We recorded the electroencephalogram and calculated the peak latencies and amplitudes for anteriorly distributed P225, N380 and late positive component. Our results suggested shorter late positive component latencies in brighter children, possibly reflecting a higher processing speed in these individuals. Increased P225 amplitude and increased N380 amplitudes for brighter children may indicate a more efficient allocation of attention for brighter children. No moderating effect of task complexity on brain-intelligence relationship was found.The present study investigates the effects of task complexity, intelligence and neural efficiency on children's performance on an Elementary Cognitive Task. Twenty-three children were divided into two groups on the basis of their Raven Progressive Matrix scores and were then asked to complete a choice reaction task with two test conditions. We recorded the electroencephalogram and calculated the peak latencies and amplitudes for anteriorly distributed P225, N380 and late positive component. Our results suggested shorter late positive component latencies in brighter children, possibly reflecting a higher processing speed in these individuals. Increased P225 amplitude and increased N380 amplitudes for brighter children may indicate a more efficient allocation of attention for brighter children. No moderating effect of task complexity on brain-intelligence relationship was found

Novel heterozygous variants in the EP300 gene cause Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome 2: Reports from two Chinese children

Abstract Background Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome (RSTS) is a rare autosomal‐dominant genetic disease caused by variants of CREBBP (RSTS1) or EP300 (RSTS2) gene. RSTS2 is much less common, with less than 200 reported cases worldwide to date. More reports are still needed to increase the understanding of its clinical manifestations and genetic characteristics. Methods The clinical data of two children with RSTS2 were analyzed retrospectively, and their clinical manifestations, auxiliary examinations, and mutational spectrum were summarized. Liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometer (LC–MS/MS) technology was used to detect the levels of steroid hormones if possible. Results After analyzing the clinical and genetic characteristics of two boys with RSTS2 (0.7 and 10.4 years old, respectively) admitted in our hospital, we identified two novel heterozygous variants in the EP300 exon 22 (c.3750C > A, p. Cys1250*, pathogenic; c.1889A > G, p. Tyr630Cys, likely pathogenic), which could account for their phenotype. In addition to common clinical manifestations such as special facial features, microcephaly, growth retardation, intellectual disability, speech delay, congenital heart defect, recurrent respiratory infections, and immunodeficiency, we found one of them had a rare feature of adrenal insufficiency, and LC–MS/MS detection showed an overall decrease in steroid hormones. Conclusion In our study, we identified two novel variants in the EP300 exon 22, and for the first time, we reported a case of RSTS2 associated with adrenal insufficiency, which will enrich the clinical and mutational spectrum of this syndrome

Effects of sampling methods on starch granule size measurement of potato tubers under a light microscope

<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning /> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas /> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables /> <w:SnapToGridInCell /> <w:WrapTextWithPunct /> <w:UseAsianBreakRules /> <w:DontGrowAutofit /> <w:UseFELayout /> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id=ieooui></object> <mce:style><! st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } --> <!--[endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <mce:style><! /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} --> <!--[endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">Light-microscopic measurement of starch granule size is the preferred approach in most laboratories because it is simple, rapid and visual and because it can study both size and shape. However, potato juice consists of starch granules with very different sizes and precipitation/movement speeds, which causes differences when sampling the juice and taking the microscopic images. The previously described method is to scrape and transfer some juice from potatoes using a razor blade directly to a slide with some water for microscopic observation. In this study we used a tape-hole chamber on the microscopic slide to reduce the cover-slip-induced shifting of small and medium granules. We improved the starch measurement reproducibility by testing various juice sampling methods. The reproducibility between repeated experiments using 10 cultivars was increased from a correlation efficient r = 0.815 in the razor-blade-scraping method to r = 0.923 in a squeezing-juice method.<span> </span>The largest starch granule detected was 151 µm in length.<span> </span>Sampling methods (using a razor-blade or a garlic press) strongly influenced the granule length values measured from the same potato tuber. The results indicated that 1) The squeezing-juice approach is more reproducible, and 2) The average length of starch granules is one of the most reproducible scores but varies according to juice-sampling methods.</span></p

Identification of a Putative CodY Regulon in the Gram-Negative Phylum Synergistetes

CodY is a dominant regulator in low G + C, Gram-positive Firmicutes that governs the regulation of various metabolic pathways and cellular processes. By using various bioinformatics analyses and DNA affinity precipitation assay (DAPA), this study confirmed the presence of CodY orthologues and corresponding regulons in Gram-negative Synergistetes. A novel palindromic sequence consisting of AT-rich arms separated by a spacer region of variable length and sequence was identified in the promoters of the putative codY-containing operons in Synergistetes. The consensus sequence from genera Synergistes and Cloacibacillus (5&prime;-AATTTTCTTAAAATTTCSCTTGATATTTACAATTTT) contained three AT-rich regions, resulting in two palindromic sequences; one of which is identical to Firmicutes CodY box (5&prime;-AATTTTCWGAAAATT). The function of the consensus sequence was tested by using a recombinant CodY protein (His-CodYDSM) of Cloacibacillus evryensis DSM19522 in DAPA. Mutations in the central AT-rich sequence reduced significantly the binding of His-CodYDSM, whereas mutations in the 5&prime; or 3&prime; end AT-rich sequence slightly reduced the binding, indicating that CodYDSM could recognize both palindromic sequences. The proposed binding sequences were found in the promoters of multiple genes involved in amino acids biosynthesis, metabolism, regulation, and stress responses in Synergistetes. Thus, a CodY-like protein from Synergistetes may function similarly to Firmicutes CodY