Genome-Wide Association Studies Reveal the Genetic Basis of Ionomic Variation in Rice

Rice (Oryza sativa) is an important dietary source of both essential micronutrients and toxic trace elements for humans. The genetic basis underlying the variations in the mineral composition, the ionome, in rice remains largely unknown. Here, we describe a comprehensive study of the genetic architecture of the variation in the rice ionome performed using genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of the concentrations of 17 mineral elements in rice grain from a diverse panel of 529 accessions, each genotyped at ∼6.4 million single nucleotide polymorphism loci. We identified 72 loci associated with natural ionomic variations, 32 that are common across locations and 40 that are common within a single location. We identified candidate genes for 42 loci and provide evidence for the causal nature of three genes, the sodium transporter gene Os-HKT1;5 for sodium, Os-MOLYBDATE TRANSPORTER1;1 for molybdenum, and Grain number, plant height, and heading date7 for nitrogen. Comparison of GWAS data from rice versus Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) also identified well-known as well as new candidates with potential for further characterization. Our study provides crucial insights into the genetic basis of ionomic variations in rice and serves as an important foundation for further studies on the genetic and molecular mechanisms controlling the rice ionome

Identification of Long Non-Coding RNA MIR4435-2HG as a Prognostic Biomarker in Bladder Cancer

The abnormal expression of long non-coding RNAs(lncRNAs) is closely related to the prognosis of patients. This finding may indicate a new target for the treatment of malignant tumors. Non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) is the most common subtype of bladder cancer, and BCG intravesical therapy is the first-line treatment for NMIBC, but about half of NMIBC patients relapse within two years after BCG treatment. Therefore, it is necessary to screen out lncRNAs related to the prognosis and treatment of BGC-resistant patients. Here, we performed differential expression analysis of lncRNAs in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) datasets, and screened MIR4435-2HG as the only BCG-response-related lncRNA. Then, the prognosis value of MIR4435-2HG was validated in several publicly available cohorts, and confirmed its prognostic value in bladder cancer of different stages. In addition, we also analyzed its genetic alterations, clinical relevance, function enrichment, and association with other biomarkers. Further validation of the expression of MIR4435-2HG might be helpful to instruct NMIBC prognosis and treatment

Circular RNAs and Drug Resistance in Genitourinary Cancers: A Literature Review

In recent years, systematic treatment has made great progress in genitourinary tumors. However, some patients develop resistance to the treatments, resulting in an increase in mortality. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) form a class of non-coding RNAs with high stability and significant clinical relevance. Accumulating evidence indicates that circRNAs play a vital role in cancer development and tumor chemotherapy resistance. This review summarizes the molecular and cellular mechanisms of drug resistance mediated by circRNAs to common drugs used in the treatment of genitourinary tumors. Several circRNAs were identified to regulate the responsiveness to systemic treatments in genitourinary tumors, including chemotherapies such as cisplatin and targeted therapies such as enzalutamide. Canonically, cicrRNAs participate in the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network, or in some cases directly interact with proteins, regulate downstream pathways, and even some circRNAs have the potential to produce proteins or polypeptides. Several cellular mechanisms were involved in circRNA-dependent drug resistance, including autophagy, cancer stem cells, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and exosomes. The potential clinical prospect of circRNAs in regulating tumor drug resistance was also discussed

Effect of Chitosan/Thyme Oil Coating and UV-C on the Softening and Ripening of Postharvest Blueberry Fruits

This study investigated the possible mechanism of softening and senescence of blueberry after harvest using chitosan/thyme oil coating combined with UV-C (short wave ultraviolet irradiation) treatment. On the 56th day of storage, the CBP, cellulose, and hemicellulose contents in the chitosan/thyme oil coating +UV-C-treated group were 1.41, 1.65, and 1.20 times higher than those in the control group. Compared with the control group, the activities of polygalacturonase (PG), pectin methylesterase (PME), β-glucosidase (β-Gal), and cellulose (Cx) were significantly reduced (p < 0.05) after chitosan/thyme oil coating +UV-C, and their maximum values decreased by 5.41 μg/h g, 5.40 U/g, 12.41 U/g, and 3.85 μg/h g, respectively. Moreover, chitosan/thyme oil coating combined with UV-C treatment inhibited the gene expression of PG, PME, Cx, and β-Gal and then regulated the decrease in PG, PME, Cx, and β-Gal activities, inhibited the degradation of cell wall polysaccharides, and delayed the softening and senescence of postharvest blueberries. The results showed that chitosan/thyme oil coating, UV-C, and chitosan/thyme oil coating + UV-C could significantly inhibit postharvest softening of blueberry; chitosan/thyme oil coating +UV-C had the best effect

Evaluation of an Element-Tagged Duplex Immunoassay Coupled with Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry Detection: A Further Study for the Application of the New Assay in Clinical Laboratory

Background: Element-tagged immunoassay coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) detection has the potential to revolutionize immunoassay analysis for multiplex detection. However, a further study referring to the standard evaluation and clinical sample verification is needed to ensure its reliability for simultaneous analysis in clinical laboratories. Methods: Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and α-fetoprotein (AFP) were chosen for the duplex immunoassay. The performance of the assay was evaluated according to guidelines from the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). Moreover, reference intervals (RIs) of CEA and AFP were established. At last, 329 clinical samples were analyzed by the proposed method and results were compared with those obtained with electrochemiluminescent immunoassay (ECLIA) method. Results: The measurement range of the assay was 2–940 ng/mL for CEA and 1.5–1000 ng/mL for AFP, with a detection limit of 0.94 ng/mL and 0.34 ng/mL, respectively. The inter-assay and intra-assay imprecision were all less than 6.58% and 10.62%, respectively. The RI of CEA and AFP was 0–3.84 ng/mL and 0–9.94 ng/mL, respectively. Regarding to clinical sample detection, no significant difference was observed between the proposed duplex assay and the ECLIA method. Conclusions: The ICP-MS-based duplex immunoassay was successfully developed and the analytical performance fully proved clinical applicability. Well, this could be different with other analytes

Histopathological Observation of Aeromonas hydrophila Infection and Influences on Immune-related Enzyme Activity Indexes in Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov.

Bacterial sepsis caused by Aeromonas hydrophila infection is one of the most common infectious diseases of Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. It has characteristics of quick onset, high morbidity, and high mortality. Bacterial sepsis has become an important constraint against the industrialization of aquaculture of Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. In this study, Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. were immersed in 1.0×109 CFU/mL Aeromonas hydrophila for infection, the cumulative mortality at 1d, 3d, 5d, 7d and 14d were 10%, 26.67%, 40%, 40% and 40%, respectively. After being challenged with Aeromonas hydrophila, hemorrhage focus and suppuration were observed on the body surface, pelvic fin, anal fin, and tail fin base of Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. Dissecting Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov., blackening of the spleen and hemorrhage at the liver were discovered at 3d after being infected with Aeromonas hydrophila. Through tissue section observation, liver tissue was found to have to hemorrhage focus, and vacuolated liver cells, accompanied by inflammatory cell penetration. Inflammatory cell infiltration was also observed in spleen tissues and was most serious at 3d day after infection. After being infected with Aeromonas hydrophila, the gill filaments of Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. were deformed and shortened, gill filament cells fell off, intestinal villi are shortened and mucus cells are increased. After Aeromonas hydrophila infection to Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov., the lysozyme content and activities of catalase, alkaline phosphatase, and total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) in the liver began to increase significantly after the first day and reached a peak on the third day. However, they began to decrease gradually on the fifth day. The acid phosphatase (ACP) activity increased dramatically after the first day, peaked on the fifth day, and then decreased on the seventh day. It is speculated that such changes were attributed to the following two aspects: 1) On the one hand, Aeromonas hydrophila infection stimulates the nonspecific immune system of Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. 2) On the other hand, lesion of tissues occurs after Aeromonas hydrophila infection of Carassius auratus indigentiaus subsp. Nov. reaches a certain extent, thus influencing lysozyme content and the catalase activities, ACP, alkaline phosphatase and T-SOD in the liver

Research progress in molecular biology of fish immunoglobulin D

Immunoglobulins are the primary mediators of the humoral immune response in fish. Studies of immunoglobulins in fish are particularly important for the immunological control of fish diseases. While immunoglobulin D (IgD) was first discovered in 1965, it remains the least understood member of the antibody family. During evolutionary development from fish to humans, IgD has developed critical immunological functions. However, these immunological functions are not well understood. There are two forms of IgD, membrane IgD (mIgD) and secreted IgD (sIgD). sIgD and mIgD are formed by B lymphocytes through different splicing modes. In this paper, IgD's structure and formation process in fish, the distribution characteristics of IgD on B cells, the mediated signaling pathways, and the functions of IgD are reviewed