Convergent, Parallel and Correlated Evolution of Trophic Morphologies in the Subfamily Schizothoracinae from the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Schizothoracine fishes distributed in the water system of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau (QTP) and adjacent areas are characterized by being highly adaptive to the cold and hypoxic environment of the plateau, as well as by a high degree of diversity in trophic morphology due to resource polymorphisms. Although convergent and parallel evolution are prevalent in the organisms of the QTP, it remains unknown whether similar evolutionary patterns have occurred in the schizothoracine fishes. Here, we constructed for the first time a tentative molecular phylogeny of the schizothoracine fishes based on the complete sequences of the cytochrome b gene. We employed this molecular phylogenetic framework to examine the evolution of trophic morphologies. We used Pagel's maximum likelihood method to estimate the evolutionary associations of trophic morphologies and food resource use. Our results showed that the molecular and published morphological phylogenies of Schizothoracinae are partially incongruent with respect to some intergeneric relationships. The phylogenetic results revealed that four character states of five trophic morphologies and of food resource use evolved at least twice during the diversification of the subfamily. State transitions are the result of evolutionary patterns including either convergence or parallelism or both. Furthermore, our analyses indicate that some characters of trophic morphologies in the Schizothoracinae have undergone correlated evolution, which are somewhat correlated with different food resource uses. Collectively, our results reveal new examples of convergent and parallel evolution in the organisms of the QTP. The adaptation to different trophic niches through the modification of trophic morphologies and feeding behaviour as found in the schizothoracine fishes may account for the formation and maintenance of the high degree of diversity and radiations in fish communities endemic to QTP

Accuracy of Presepsin in Sepsis Diagnosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

It's difficult to differentiate sepsis from non-sepsis, especially non-infectious SIRS, because no good standard exists for proof of infection. Soluble CD14 subtype (sCD14-ST), recently re-named presepsin, was identified as a new marker for the diagnosis of sepsis in several reports. However, the findings were based on the results of individual clinical trials, rather than a comprehensive and overall estimation. Thus, we conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the pooled accuracy of presepsin in patients with sepsis suspect.A comprehensive electronic search was performed via internet retrieval system up to 15 December 2014. Methodological quality assessment was applied by using the QUADAS2 tool. The diagnostic value of presepsin in sepsis was evaluated by using the pooled estimate of sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratio, and diagnostic odds ratio, as well as summary receiver operating characteristics curve.Nine studies with 10 trials and 2159 cases were included in the study. Only two trials had low concerns regarding applicability, whereas all trials were deemed to be at high risk of bias. Heterogeneity existed in the non-threshold effect, but not in the threshold effect. The pooled sensitivity of presepsin for sepsis was 0.78 (0.76-0.80), pooled specificity was 0.83 (0.80-0.85), pooled positive likelihood ratio was 4.63 (3.27-6.55), pooled negative likelihood ratio was 0.22 (0.16-0.30), and pooled diagnostic odds ratio was 21.73 (12.81-36.86). The area under curve of summary receiver operating characteristics curve was 0.89 (95%CI: 0.84 to 0.94) and Q* index was 0.82 (95%CI: 0.77 to 0.87).This meta-analysis demonstrates that presepsin had some superiority in the management of patients, and may be a helpful and valuable biomarker in early diagnosis of sepsis. However, presepsin showed a moderate diagnostic accuracy in differentiating sepsis from non-sepsis which prevented it from being recommended as a definitive test for diagnosing sepsis in isolation, but the results should be interpreted cautiously

Improving Image Quality of Bronchial Arteries with Virtual Monochromatic Spectral CT Images.

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the clinical value of using monochromatic images in spectral CT pulmonary angiography to improve image quality of bronchial arteries. METHODS:We retrospectively analyzed the chest CT images of 38 patients who underwent contrast-enhanced spectral CT. These images included a set of 140kVp polychromatic images and the default 70keV monochromatic images. Using the standard Gemstone Spectral Imaging (GSI) viewer on an advanced workstation (AW4.6,GE Healthcare), an optimal energy level (in keV) for obtaining the best contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) for the artery could be automatically obtained. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), CNR and objective image quality score (1-5) for these 3 image sets (140kVp, 70keV and optimal energy level) were obtained and, statistically compared. The image quality score consistency between the two observers was also evaluated using Kappa test. RESULTS:The optimal energy levels for obtaining the best CNR were 62.58±2.74keV.SNR and CNR from the 140kVp polychromatic, 70keV and optimal keV monochromatic images were (16.44±5.85, 13.24±5.52), (20.79±7.45, 16.69±6.27) and (24.9±9.91, 20.53±8.46), respectively. The corresponding subjective image quality scores were 1.97±0.82, 3.24±0.75, and 4.47±0.60. SNR, CNR and subjective scores had significant difference among groups (all p0.80). CONCLUSIONS:Virtual monochromatic images at approximately 63keV in dual-energy spectral CT pulmonary angiography yielded the best CNR and highest diagnostic confidence for imaging bronchial arteries

Cytotoxicity evaluation and apoptosis-inducing effects of furanone analogues in insect cell line SL2

Insecticides containing furan ring have attracted more attention owing to their unique mechanism of action. 25 furanone analogues were used to conduct a preliminary screening on insect cell line SL2 and these compounds exhibited good cytoactivity. Particularly, compound 14 presented good inhibitory effect with an IC50 value of 28.14 μM. Subsequently, we investigated the selectivity against insect cells by testing the cytotoxicity of it on human cell line HEK293 and we noticed that compound 14 was less toxicity than the reference insect cells. Finally, we attempted to illustrate the act mechanism of compound 14 on SL2 cells at the cellular level and found it initiated apoptosis through a caspase-dependent mitochondrial pathway that down-regulated mitochondrial membrane potential level, increased the activity of caspase-3 and altered the cell cycle. The result showed that compound 14 could be considered as a new potent insecticide to be used for further optimization

The Bioavailability and Biological Activities of Phytosterols as Modulators of Cholesterol Metabolism

Phytosterols are natural sterols widely found in plants that have a variety of physiological functions, and their role in reducing cholesterol absorption has garnered much attention. Although the bioavailability of phytosterols is only 0.5–2%, they can still promote cholesterol balance in the body. A mechanism of phytosterols for lowering cholesterol has now been proposed. They not only reduce the uptake of cholesterol in the intestinal lumen and affect its transport, but also regulate the metabolism of cholesterol in the liver. In addition, phytosterols can significantly reduce the plasma concentration of total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), with a dose-response relationship. Ingestion of 3 g of phytosterols per day can reach the platform period, and this dose can reduce LDL-C by about 10.7%. On the other hand, phytosterols can also activate the liver X receptor α-CPY7A1 mediated bile acids excretion pathway and accelerate the transformation and metabolism of cholesterol. This article reviews the research progress of phytosterols as a molecular regulator of cholesterol and the mechanism of action for this pharmacological effect

Association between 3801T>C Polymorphism of CYP1A1 and Idiopathic Male Infertility Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

<div><p>Background</p><p>Epidemiological studies have evaluated the association between 3801T>C polymorphism of CYP1A1 gene and the risk for idiopathic male infertility, but the results are inconclusive. We aimed to derive a more precise estimation of the relationship by conducting a meta-analysis of case-control studies.</p><p>Methods</p><p>This study conformed to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. PubMed, Embase and CNKI databases were searched through November 2013 to identify relevant studies. Pooled odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were used to assess the strength of the association between CYP1A1 3801T>C polymorphism and idiopathic male infertility risk. <i>Q</i>-test was performed to evaluate between-study heterogeneity and publication bias was appraised using funnel plots. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate the robustness of meta-analysis findings.</p><p>Results</p><p>Six studies involving 1,060 cases and 1,225 controls were included in this meta-analysis. Overall, significant associations between 3801T>C polymorphism and idiopathic male infertility risk were observed in allelic comparison (OR = 1.36, 95% CI: 1.01–1.83), homozygous model (OR = 2.18, 95% CI: 1.15–4.12), and recessive model (OR = 1.86, 95% CI: 1.09–3.20), with robust findings according to sensitivity analyses. However, subgroup analyses did not further identify the susceptibility to idiopathic male infertility in all comparisons. Funnel plot inspections did not reveal evidence of publication bias.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>The current meta-analysis provides evidence of a significant association between CYP1A1 3801T>C polymorphism and idiopathic male infertility risk. Considering the limitation inherited from the eligible studies, further confirmation in large-scale and well-designed studies is needed.</p></div

Poor Prognosis of Phosphatase of Regenerating Liver 3 Expression in Gastric Cancer: A Meta-Analysis

<div><p>Background</p><p>Overexpression of phosphatase of regenerating liver 3 (PRL-3) has been implicated in gastric cancer (GC) metastasis. Epidemiological studies have evaluated the relationship between PRL-3 expression and prognosis in GC. However, results still remains controversial. In this study, a meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the association of PRL-3 expression with overall survival (OS) and clinicopathological characteristics.</p><p>Methods</p><p>Literature databases were searched to identify eligible studies dated until April 2013. Summary hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated to estimate the association.</p><p>Results</p><p>A total of 1380 GC patients from six studies were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, the combined HR estimate for OS in a random-effect model was 1.89 (95% CI = 1.38–2.60; <i>P</i><0.001). Results showed that PRL-3 overexpression was significantly associated with OS, indicating that it may be a biomarker for poor prognosis of GC. Both subgroup and sensitivity analyses further identified the prognostic role of PRL-3 expression in GC patients. Moreover, PRL-3 overexpression was significantly associated with tumor stage (OR = 2.25; 95% CI = 1.63–3.12; <i>P</i><0.001), depth of invasion (OR = 2.03; 95% CI = 1.38–2.98; <i>P</i><0.001), vascular invasion (OR = 2.52; 95% CI = 1.79–3.56; <i>P</i><0.001), lymphatic invasion (OR = 3.74; 95% CI = 2.49–5.63; <i>P</i><0.001), and lymph node metastasis (OR = 4.56; 95% CI = 2.37–8.76; <i>P</i><0.001). However, when age, sex, tumor size, and tumor differentiation were considered, no obvious association was observed.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>This meta-analysis reveals significant association of PRL-3 overexpression with OS and some clinicopathological features in GC. PRL-3 may be a predicative factor of poor prognosis and aggressive tumor behavior in GC patients.</p></div