The evolution of microbialite forms during the Early Triassic transgression: A case study in Chongyang of Hubei Province, South China

The widespread development of microbialites in shallow areas of the Tethys Ocean at the start of the Early Triassic reflects the deterioration of marine ecosystems in the aftermath of the extinction that marked the demise of the majority of Palaeozoic marine faunas. Here we present a study of the evolving microbialite forms and associated biotic assemblages of this pioneering microbialite interval from exposures at Chongyang, Hubei Province, China. This research provides a perspective on the effects of eustatic transgression on marine ecosystems as water depths increased at the beginning of Mesozoic, through the study of the changing forms, microfacies and distribution of microbialites. Microbialite forms evolved from stratiform stromatolites to a sequence of tabular thrombolites (with an intercalated layer of columnar stromatolites), followed by domical thrombolites that were overlain, in turn, by oolites. The stratiform stromatolites contain poorly preserved remains of calcified cyanobacteria, but microfossils with chambered structure can also be seen. Metazoan fossils increased from the base of the overlying tabular thrombolite, reflecting increasing biodiversity with deepening of seawater. The occurrence of columnar stromatolites within the tabular thrombolite may indicate a temporary sea-level shallowing. Foraminiferans and other metazoans are absent within the columnar stromatolites, but spherical cyanobacterial remains are extremely abundant. Well-preserved calcified cyanobacteria may reflect an absence of metazoan predation and/or carbonate supersaturation of seawater. As water deepened, domical thrombolites developed and the more complex seafloor relief created varied niches between and within the domes that harboured more ecologically diverse communities. During the process of transgression within the microbialite interval, carbon isotopes exhibit a negative relationship with biodiversity, implying that upwelling of anoxic deep-ocean water, if associated with the negative excursion of carbon isotope values, did not inhibit the diversification of benthic organisms at least on shallow carbonate platforms in the period immediately after the end-Permian mass extinction.This study was jointly supported by the National Natural Science Foundationof China (Grants No. 41730320 and No. 41572001) and the 111 project(B08030

Effect of Yugan Sanjie decoction on expressions of regulatory T cells, serum P21 protein and vascular endothelial growth factor in mice with hepatocellular carcinoma

Purpose: To investigate the effect of Yugan Sanjie decoction on the expressions of regulatory T cells (Tregs), serum P21 protein and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in mice with hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: A total of forty specific-pathogen-free (SPF) Kunming mice were randomly assigned to four groups of 10 mice each. Except for normal control group, the other three groups were transfected with hepatoma-22 (H22) cells to establish a mouse model of liver cancer. Mice in the cyclophosphamide group was given cyclophosphamide at a dose of 20 mg/kg daily intragastrically, while those in decoction group were treated with Yugan Sanjie decoction (0.4 ml/kg/day) intraperitoneally. After 30 days of treatment, serum levels of CD4+ Th17, CD4+CD25+ Treg, Th17/Treg, TNF-α, and VEGF were determined. Results: There was lower serum level of CD4+ Th17 in the decoction group than in negative control and cyclophosphamide groups (p < 0.05). However, higher serum levels of CD4+CD25+ Treg and Th17/Treg were seen in the decoction group, relative to the negative control and cyclophosphamide groups (p < 0.05). Serum TNF-α was also markedly elevated in decoction group, when compared with negative control and cyclophosphamide groups (p < 0.05). Serum VEGF was markedly lower in decoction group than in negative control and cyclophosphamide groups, and was appreciably lower in cyclophosphamide group than in negative control group (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Yugan Sanjie decoction effectively alleviates clinical symptoms of LC, and improves immune function of mice by regulating serum levels of T lymphocytes. These findings provide scientific support for a new treatment strategy

Analysis of RIG-I-mediated innate immune response in rats with Kidney-Yang Deficiency Syndrome and its change following Yougui pill administration

350-359Kidney-Yang Deficiency Syndrome (KYDS) is closely bound up with the immune response of immunocompromised patients. The study is to investigate whether retinoic acid-inducible gene-I (RIG-I)-mediated innate immune response participates in the development of KYDS in rats and evaluate the effect of Yougui pill (YGP) on the response in KYDS rats. KYDS rats were induced by intramuscular injection of hydrocortisone at the dose of 10 mg/kg/d for 15 days. YGP at concentrations of 2.43 g/kg/d and 4.86 g/kg/d were administered intragastrically to KYDS rats for 30 days. The results showed that the body weight, urinary 17-hydroxycorticosteroid (17-OHCS) level, spleen size and spleen index in KYDS rats were significantly decreased compared with healthy control rats, while YGP treatment reversed them towards normal level in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, KYDS challenge not only strikingly increased the mRNA and protein expression levels of RIG-I, tripartite motif containing 25 (TRIM25), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) but also markedly enhanced the endogenous RIG-I polyubiquitination levels. Whereas, YGP treatment effectively reversed this tendency in a dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, these findings revealed that RIG-I-mediated innate immune response was closely bound up with the development of KYDS. And YGP exhibited certain anti-inflammatory effects on KYDS rats via inhibiting the RIG-I-mediated innate immune response

Analysis of RIG-I-mediated innate immune response in rats with Kidney-Yang Deficiency Syndrome and its change following Yougui pill administration

Kidney-Yang Deficiency Syndrome (KYDS) is closely bound up with the immune response of immunocompromised patients. The study is to investigate whether retinoic acid-inducible gene-I (RIG-I)-mediated innate immune responseparticipates in the development of KYDS in rats and evaluate the effect of Yougui pill (YGP) on the response in KYDS rats. KYDS rats were induced by intramuscular injection of hydrocortisone at the dose of 10 mg/kg/d for 15 days. YGP at concentrations of 2.43 g/kg/d and 4.86 g/kg/d were administered intragastrically to KYDS rats for 30 days. The resultsshowed that the body weight, urinary 17-hydroxycorticosteroid (17-OHCS) level, spleen size and spleen index in KYDS rats were significantly decreased compared with healthy control rats, while YGP treatment reversed them towards normal level in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, KYDS challenge not only strikingly increased the mRNA and protein expression levels of RIG-I, tripartite motif containing 25 (TRIM25), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) but alsomarkedly enhanced the endogenous RIG-I polyubiquitination levels. Whereas, YGP treatment effectively reversed this tendency in a dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, these findings revealed that RIG-I-mediated innate immune response was closely bound up with the development of KYDS. And YGP exhibited certain anti-inflammatory effects on KYDS rats via inhibiting the RIG-I-mediated innate immune response

A Genome Wide Association Study Identifies Common Variants Associated with Lipid Levels in the Chinese Population

Plasma lipid levels are important risk factors for cardiovascular disease and are influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Recent genome wide association studies (GWAS) have identified several lipid-associated loci, but these loci have been identified primarily in European populations. In order to identify genetic markers for lipid levels in a Chinese population and analyze the heterogeneity between Europeans and Asians, especially Chinese, we performed a meta-analysis of two genome wide association studies on four common lipid traits including total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) in a Han Chinese population totaling 3,451 healthy subjects. Replication was performed in an additional 8,830 subjects of Han Chinese ethnicity. We replicated eight loci associated with lipid levels previously reported in a European population. The loci genome wide significantly associated with TC were near DOCK7, HMGCR and ABO; those genome wide significantly associated with TG were near APOA1/C3/A4/A5 and LPL; those genome wide significantly associated with LDL were near HMGCR, ABO and TOMM40; and those genome wide significantly associated with HDL were near LPL, LIPC and CETP. In addition, an additive genotype score of eight SNPs representing the eight loci that were found to be associated with lipid levels was associated with higher TC, TG and LDL levels (P = 5.52×10-16, 1.38×10-6 and 5.59×10-9, respectively). These findings suggest the cumulative effects of multiple genetic loci on plasma lipid levels. Comparisons with previous GWAS of lipids highlight heterogeneity in allele frequency and in effect size for some loci between Chinese and European populations. The results from our GWAS provided comprehensive and convincing evidence of the genetic determinants of plasma lipid levels in a Chinese population

Testosterone Is Associated with Erectile Dysfunction: A Cross-Sectional Study in Chinese Men

Testosterone is essential for the regulation of erectile physiology, but the relationship between low testosterone and erectile dysfunction (ED) has not been firmly established.To examine the association between serum total, free and bio-available testosterone and ED in a population-based sample.A consecutive series of 1776 men aged 20–77 participated in the routine physical examination from September 2009 to December 2009 in Guangxi, China. ED was assessed using the five-item International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) questionnaire. Total testosterone (TT), sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and other biochemical profiles were measured. Free testosterone (FT) and bio-available testosterone (BT) were calculated based on Vermeulen’s formula. Data were collected with regard to smoking, alcoholic drinking, physical activity and metabolic syndrome.The prevalence of ED (IIEF-5<22) was 47.6%. Men with ED were significantly older, and more prone to smoke cigarettes (≥20 cigarettes/day) or drink alcohol (≥3 drinks/week), and more likely to have elevated blood pressure (P = 0.036) or hyperglycemia (P<0.001) compared with those without ED. The significant increase in SHBG with age was parallel to its increase with increasing severity of ED (P<0.001). The obscure increase in TT across the ED status was detected without significance (P = 0.418), but TT was positively associated with ED after adjustment for age [odds ratio (OR)  = 1.02, 95% CI (confidence internal): 1.00–1.04]. FT and BT were inversely associated with ED (OR = 0.14, 95%CI: 0.06–0.33; OR = 0.92 (95%CI: 0.89–0.96, respectively) in the univariate analysis, and this inverse association appeared to be independent of smoking status, alcoholic drinking, physical activity, hyper-triglyceridemia and hyperglycemia.FT and BT are inversely related to worsening ED, whereas the positive association between TT and ED is most likely due to the increase in SHBG

Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in East Asian-ancestry populations identifies four new loci for body mass index

Recent genetic association studies have identified 55 genetic loci associated with obesity or body mass index (BMI). The vast majority, 51 loci, however, were identified in European-ancestry populations. We conducted a meta-analysis of associations between BMI and ∼2.5 million genotyped or imputed single nucleotide polymorphisms among 86 757 individuals of Asian ancestry, followed by in silico and de novo replication among 7488–47 352 additional Asian-ancestry individuals. We identified four novel BMI-associated loci near the KCNQ1 (rs2237892, P = 9.29 × 10−13), ALDH2/MYL2 (rs671, P = 3.40 × 10−11; rs12229654, P = 4.56 × 10−9), ITIH4 (rs2535633, P = 1.77 × 10−10) and NT5C2 (rs11191580, P = 3.83 × 10−8) genes. The association of BMI with rs2237892, rs671 and rs12229654 was significantly stronger among men than among women. Of the 51 BMI-associated loci initially identified in European-ancestry populations, we confirmed eight loci at the genome-wide significance level (P < 5.0 × 10−8) and an additional 14 at P < 1.0 × 10−3 with the same direction of effect as reported previously. Findings from this analysis expand our knowledge of the genetic basis of obesity